WASHNGTON, DC – Today, Rep. Dean Phillips (MN-03) questioned Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg about online foreign interference in U.S. Elections during a hearing in the House Financial Services Committee. The hearing comes as the House passed the SHIELD Act (Stopping Harmful Interference in Elections for A Lasting Democracy Act), a comprehensive election security package. The SHIELD Act includes Rep. Dean Phillips’s (MN-03) Firewall Act, aimed at preventing foreign interference in U.S. elections by prohibiting foreign nationals from paying for online advertisements created to attack or support federal candidates.
During his questioning, Phillips raised concerns about the ability of foreign entities to purchase political ads on the social media platform. Phillips told Zuckerberg to expect Congressional scrutiny should Facebook allow entities to purchase ads with Facebook’s proposed anonymous crypto-currency, Libra.