A group of Senate Democrats is demanding clarification from Google and YouTube regarding their decision to settle a lawsuit with former President Trump. This lawsuit stemmed from YouTube suspending Trump’s account following the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.
In a letter addressed to executives at Google and YouTube, Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), and Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) expressed their apprehensions. They are particularly concerned about the implications of this settlement, which comes amid ongoing antitrust litigation involving Google.
Last month, YouTube, a subsidiary of Google, agreed to a $24.5 million settlement related to the lawsuit, with $22 million earmarked for Trump. The former president has indicated that these funds will be allocated for constructing the White House State Ballroom.
The senators highlighted the fact that the U.S. government is currently pursuing antitrust actions against Google, a point of concern considering the recent settlement.
In early September, after a federal judge opted not to mandate the breakup of Google, the company’s CEO, Sundar Pichai, attended a White House dinner with Trump and other tech industry leaders. During this meeting, Pichai emphasized the value of “constructive dialogue” with the administration.
“The public deserves to know what ‘constructive dialogue’ the Trump administration and Google had, given that Google and the Trump administration are opposing parties in the antitrust case, and whether this dialogue was in any way connected to YouTube’s settlement with President Trump,” the senators wrote Wednesday.
“Specifically, the public deserves to know whether YouTube’s settlement will influence the Trump Justice Department’s decision regarding whether to appeal and seek the stricter remedies DOJ had originally sought against Google,” they continued.
U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta opted not to force Google to sell off its Chrome browser last month, rejecting the sweeping remedies sought by the Department of Justice (DOJ) after the tech giant was found to have an illegal monopoly over online search.
He instead imposed restrictions on Google’s ability to enter into exclusive agreements to prioritize its products and mandated that the company make certain data and syndication services available to rivals.
Following the ruling, the DOJ said it was considering its options and whether to “seek additional relief.”
The Senate Democrats asked Google for details about which officials were involved in settlement talks, whether pending actions from the DOJ were discussed, and if there was any agreement to settle the YouTube lawsuit in exchange for favorable treatment.
They are also seeking details about Pichai’s conversation with Trump at the White House dinner, as well as information about any conversations between the companies and the president or administration officials in the context of the settlement.
The YouTube lawsuit was the last of three similar cases to reach a settlement. Meta agreed to pay $25 million in January to settle a lawsuit over Trump’s Jan. 6 suspension, while X reached a settlement for $10 million in February.
The Hill has reached out to Google for comment.
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