FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 22, 2025
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Washington, D.C. | Amid a prolonged government shutdown, Congress is, yet again, putting foreign interests ahead of Americans’ rights and our nation’s immediate priorities. The reintroduction of the so-called Stopping Terrorists Online Presence and Holding Accountable Tech Entities (STOP HATE) Act is a direct attack on the First Amendment, hiding behind a false banner of “national security.”
The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) warns that this legislation, sponsored by Representatives Josh Gottheimer (D) and Don Bacon (R) (see their press release), is nothing more than a government power grab — one that prioritizes the demands of the Israel Lobby over the constitutional freedoms of working Americans (see our July release).
This bill is not about stopping terrorism. It’s about silencing dissent. It weaponizes the Department of Justice and the Director of National Intelligence, turning tech companies into speech police for the federal government. Any online content flagged under the platform’s “terms of service” — no matter how vague or biased — must be reported to federal authorities. If they don’t comply, the government threatens $5 million per day in fines.
While the sponsors removed the words “hate speech” and “antisemitism” from the original text, the intent hasn’t changed. The bill still creates a digital surveillance regime where Americans are punished for what they say, what they believe, and who they criticize. By tying federal enforcement to private platform policies, this bill turns social media companies into government deputies, crushing free expression out of fear.
ADC notes the timing is strategic: after a similar measure was defeated in California, the same political forces are now pushing it at the federal level —using Executive Order 13224 and Section 219 of the Immigration Act to justify this new censorship framework.
This isn’t national security — its national betrayal. Instead of defending the voices of hardworking Americans, Congress is bending to the will of foreign lobbies and elite donors who want to police what citizens can say online. Speech critical of Israel or U.S. foreign policy could be wiped out entirely — not because it’s illegal, but because it’s inconvenient for powerful interests.
The First Amendment is non-negotiable. The American people deserve representatives who will defend their rights, not sell them out to foreign influence. ADC calls on every member of Congress, regardless of party, to reject this dangerous bill and stand with the Constitution, not with censorship, not with intimidation, and not with the Israel Lobby.