Ted Cruz Isn't the Only Politician Talking Nonsense About Tech Companies and Election Integrity
Unpacking TikTok freakouts, mail-in voting controversies, and money printers going brrr, on the Reason Roundtable podcast.
Today's Reason Roundtable podcast begins with this gem of hyperbolic WTFery, from a politician people used to routinely characterize as both libertarian-leaning and smart, Sen. Ted Cruz (R–Texas):
#BigTech's power over our free speech is profoundly dangerous. @Google, @Facebook, and @Twitter are the single greatest threats to our democracy & free and fair elections. Solving their totalitarianism will be an enormous challenge going forward. pic.twitter.com/KgA2EN1pP1
— Senator Ted Cruz (@SenTedCruz) August 2, 2020
Rountablists Nick Gillespie, Peter Suderman, Matt Welch, and special guest star Eric Boehm bounce from there to last week's godawful congressional grilling of Big Tech execs, President Donald Trump's election-delay trial balloon, the logistic headaches of counting mail-in ballots, the great TikTok wars, competing proposals for the next federal corona-package, and the deeply weird return of professional sports.
Audio production by Ian Keyser and Regan Taylor.
Music: "Wicked Things" by Quincas Moreira
Relevant links from the show:
"What Should Have Happened at the Big Tech Antitrust Hearing," by Austin Bragg and Andrew Heaton
"Microsoft May Save TikTok From Trump's Clutches, After President Proposes Ban on Chinese Video App," by Elizabeth Nolan Brown
"The Return of Sports Is Great. It's Also Deeply Weird," by Eric Boehm
"Congress Wants To Regulate Big Tech. They Still Don't Understand It," by Elizabeth Nolan Brown
"Don't Expand Coronavirus Unemployment Insurance," by Veronique de Rugy
"Congress Used the Antitrust Hearing To Peddle Petty Grievances Against Amazon, Apple, Facebook, and Google," by Eric Boehm
"A Congressman Asked Mark Zuckerberg Why Facebook Censored Donald Trump Jr., but That Was Twitter," by Robby Soave
"Senate Republicans' $1 Trillion COVID-19 Relief Bill Includes Billions for New Fighter Jets, Attack Helicopters, and Missiles," by Christian Britschgi
"The Next Coronavirus Stimulus Plan: More Spending, Smaller Unemployment Benefits, and Tax Breaks for Going Out To Eat," by Eric Boehm
