27 Reform Groups and Experts Urge Congress to Act Promptly to Pass the Bipartisan Honest Ads Act
27 Reform Groups and Experts Urge Congress to Act Promptly to Pass the Bipartisan Honest Ads Act
In a letter sent to Senators and Representatives today, 27 reform organizations and experts called on Members to support the Honest Ads Act, bipartisan legislation introduced in the Senate (S.1989) by Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Mark Warner (D-VA) and John McCain (R-AZ), and in the House (H.R.4077) by Representatives Derek Kilmer (D-WA) and Mike Coffman (R-CO).
The Honest Ads Act addresses the need for new rules about online advertising to expose efforts undertaken by foreign interests to sabotage U.S. elections.
Democracy 21 and 26 other groups previously endorsed the legislation in October 2017 when it was first introduced in the Senate.
According to the letter:
It is beyond any reasonable doubt that Russia conducted numerous cyber-attacks on our elections and our democracy in order to interfere with and manipulate the 2016 presidential election. This included the use of false, misleading and fake information distributed on Facebook, Twitter, Google and other platforms.
The letter stated:
This resulted in millions of Americans being bombarded with Russia-sponsored ads in 2016, without any way of knowing about the role of foreign interests in running those ads.
The letter continued:
The bill recognizes that voters have a right to know about foreign sponsors and funders of campaign-related Internet ads.
Our organizations and experts strongly urge you to support the Honest Ads Act and to publicly press for prompt passage of the bill by Congress.
This is not only a campaign finance issue. This is a matter of the utmost importance to our national security, to the integrity of our elections, and to protecting our democracy from sabotage by foreign adversaries.
The letter noted that the Honest Ads Act would require digital platforms to “maintain a public file of ‘qualified political advertisements,’ including ads that contain a message relating to any political matter of national importance,” and would also require that these platforms make “reasonable efforts” to ensure that these advertisements are not purchased by a foreign national.
The letter also urged Members to recognize the importance of Congress acting on the Honest Ads Act by cosponsoring the legislation if they have not already done so, and by publicly pressing for prompt passage of the legislation.
The letter concluded:
If members of Congress are not prepared to do their part to prevent Russia or any other foreign interest from sabotaging future U.S elections, then you and your colleagues will certainly bear your share of responsibility for future illegal intervention by foreign interests in U.S. elections.
The reform organizations and experts signing the letter include:
American Oversight
Brennan Center for Justice
Bryan Jones
Campaign Legal Center
Center for Digital Democracy
Center for Responsive Politics
Coalition to Preserve, Protect and Defend
Common Cause
CREW
Demand Progress Action
Democracy 21
Demos
End Citizens United
Equal Justice Society
Every Voice
Free Speech for People
Issue One
Joshua A. Geltzer, former National Security Council Senior Director for Counterterrorism
Kathleen Clark
League of Women Voters
Norman Eisen, chief White House ethics lawyer, 2009-2011
People For the American Way
Public Citizen
Public Knowledge
Represent.Us
Sarah Chayes
Sunlight Foundation
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