Graham Seeks Durbin’s Support for Bill Repealing Section 230
Sen. Lindsey Graham wants to introduce legislation with Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin, D-Ill., that will repeal Section 230 when Congress returns from break Feb. 26, the South Carolina Republican told us before the start of recess.
Durbin “told me” he was on board, Graham said. “We’ll take this up after the break.” However, Durbin’s office said in a statement Friday that he “has not agreed to anything yet.”
Graham, the committee's ranking member, and Durbin have publicly expressed interest in exploring a repeal of Communications Decency Act Section 230 (see 2306010074) and (2305110048). The 1996 statute is at the heart of the debate over children’s online safety, and the committee recently heard testimony from Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and the CEOs of TikTok, X, Discord and Snap (see 2401310081).
Graham has discussed with Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., the concept of a Section 230 repeal bill. Asked about Durbin’s potential support, Whitehouse told us: “You’ll have to speak to the chairman about that, but we do want to introduce it as a strong bipartisan measure.”
Senate Privacy Subcommittee Chairman Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., told us he supports Graham. “I’ve supported abolishing Section 230 for 15 years. I think I would be on board with it.”
Graham and Senate Privacy Subcommittee ranking member Josh Hawley, R-Mo., have said the only way to get tech platforms to change their behavior and improve the online environment for children is exposing them to liability. Hawley earlier this month unsuccessfully sought unanimous consent (UC) on the Senate floor for Durbin’s Stop Children Suffering from Abuse and Mistreatment (Stop CSAM) Act (see 2402070056). Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., blocked Hawley’s effort, saying the bill would weaken encryption, which, he said, is the strongest online protection for children and families, because it would punish companies for offering strong encryption standards. Graham said previously his plans include seeking UC for the Stop CSAM Act and four other Senate Judiciary Committee-passed bills when Congress returns.
Senators are wrongly focused on Section 230, said Wyden, who co-authored the 1996 law. He has repeatedly argued for legislation increasing DOJ’s resources for CSAM cases. The Invest in Child Safety Act would authorize $5 billion in mandatory funding for investigations and prosecution. “It is indisputable that there is a serious issue here,” Wyden told us. “I’ve suggested real ways to deal with it.” The First Amendment protects the vast majority of objectionable content online, so Section 230 has little bearing, though people think blaming Section 230 “sounds good.”
“A wholesale repeal is not the right strategy,” said Senate Commerce Committee ranking member Ted Cruz, R-Texas. “I am a vocal proponent for reforming Section 230, but I think we should use it as an incentive to change Big Tech’s behavior.”
An “outright repeal is a good way to posture the discussion,” said Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C. Section 230 “clearly needs some work, but I think an outright repeal would be precipitous.”
Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, told us he’s unsure if he would sponsor a Graham-Durbin bill, but said “I’m sure interested in that. ... I kind of feel that a law passed in 1996, before we had Big Tech, ought to be reconsidered now, based on what we know about Big Tech and the abuses they bring to society.”