Devin Nunes Retires From Congress To Spend More Time Banning Satirical Cows From Trump's New Social Network
from the we-have-to-do-content-moderation? dept
In a bit of a Monday afternoon surprise, Rep. Devin Nunes has announced that he's retiring from Congress this month to become the CEO of Trump's new media company, Trump Media & Technology Group -- a company which apparently now has tons of money in the bank (even if from sketchy sources) but also is facing a newly revealed SEC investigation that might require someone who actually understands this stuff, rather than a very thin-skinned politician who sues people who criticize him.
Note to Devin: you can't sue the SEC for defamation.
There's all sorts of speculation about why Nunes would do this now. He's actually a pretty powerful Congressional representative, and in line to be in charge of some very powerful committees if, as is widely expected, the Republicans retake control over the House next year. But, he might also see the writing on the wall. Earlier in his career he was winning elections by a pretty wide margin, but the last two elections have actually been pretty tight. And, with California going through its redistricting process, he may have realized there was a high likelihood he'd lose next time around. Also, we know that watchdog groups have asked for an investigation into some of Nunes' activities.
And, then, of course, there are all the many, many frivolous lawsuits he's filed over the last few years, with the first one remaining the most notable and the most ridiculous: suing a satirical cow that made fun of Devin Nunes online. The fact that he'd sue a satirist for making fun of him does not suggest someone who believes very strongly in free speech.
So it should be extra interesting to see just how Devin Nunes handles content moderation questions for Truth Social now that he's in charge. Will he allow @DevinCow to have an account there? Or will he prove himself to be a hypocrite -- complaining about "censorship" on other sites, but actively engaging in the same (or more selective and biased) moderation on his own site? The press release from TMTG with quotes from Nunes reads as quite laughable when you realize he's suing satirical accounts on Twitter that made fun of him:
Congressman Devin Nunes added, “The time has come to reopen the Internet and allow for the free flow of ideas and expression without censorship. The United States of America made the dream of the Internet a reality and it will be an American company that restores the dream. I’m humbled and honored President Trump has asked me to lead the mission and the world class team that will deliver on this promise.”
For someone who is literally suing a bunch of reporters and critics, the claim of allowing for "the free flow of ideas and expression without censorship" doesn't just ring hollow, it rings of being a total hypocrite.
Either way, as we've seen with every wannabe Trumpist social media site promising to "bring back" free speech, it doesn't take long for them to realize that content moderation is not about "censorship," it is simply necessary to run a modern website.
How long will it take Nunes to recognize this simple fact? And will it happen before or after Trump fires him and stabs him in the back?
Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.
Techdirt is one of the few remaining truly independent media outlets. We do not have a giant corporation behind us, and we rely heavily on our community to support us, in an age when advertisers are increasingly uninterested in sponsoring small, independent sites — especially a site like ours that is unwilling to pull punches in its reporting and analysis.
While other websites have resorted to paywalls, registration requirements, and increasingly annoying/intrusive advertising, we have always kept Techdirt open and available to anyone. But in order to continue doing so, we need your support. We offer a variety of ways for our readers to support us, from direct donations to special subscriptions and cool merchandise — and every little bit helps. Thank you.
–The Techdirt Team
Filed Under: 1st amendment, congress, content moderation, defamation, devin nunes, donald trump, free speech, nune's cow, retirement, social media
Companies: tmtg, truth social
Reader Comments
Subscribe: RSS
View by: Time | Thread
Nunes will run the Ministry of Rumination & Silly Lolsuits for Trump.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Like that's going to stop him.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re:
My popcorn futures would be grateful if he tried.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re:
I think that note needs to point out that he can't win a suit against the SEC.
Not that even that fact has ever stopped him.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re:
Nunes: YOLO!
SEC: Please dismiss.
DC Circuit: Dismissed
Nunes: Cert please!
SCOTUS: Sure, go ahead buddy. Suing the government for defamation is now a thing and we'll give no guidance on what is a meritorious lawsuit.
Giant wave of frivolous lawsuits
SCOTUS: What, me worry?
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re:
The SEC is clearly a private actor in this capacity, taking orders from Twitter.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Nunes was given "an offer he couldn't refuse", which I would guess means that he literally could not refuse to take the offer otherwise Trump would unleash whatever kompromat he has on Nunes to basically ruin his life.
And Trump likes to keep his lackeys on a short list.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re:
More like he likes to keep them grabbed by the short hairs. If he's not in total control, then he's outta control. Oh, wait, I repeat myself....
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re:
By 'Offer he can't refuse', he means that since his district will be harder to win next time, he needed a new gig and lobbying firms expect a certain level of competence and knowhow he never demonstrated, Fox are keeping Trump lackeys at arms length just in case, Newsmax, OAN and Infowars don't pay the big bucks, nobody wants books by the guy who sued a pretend cow so his options for keeping the grift going were limited.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re:
I have zero evidence or facts or anything, but I imagine that this is what the lawsuits about @DevinsCow are about. Here's Devin Nunes, chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, and someone in an Intelligence agency released a hint of the kompromat to the @DevinsCow author. (Whomever) publishes, and now Devin, with the wrath of a woman scorned, is on a mission to find out who dared try to blackmail him. Devin! The single most powerful congressman with the power of budget over ALL USA Intelligence Agencies and a stalwart champion of all things snooping, and they have the gall to threaten him?
Oooh. Someone's gonna pay.
Besides, it's a national security problem if some intelligence agents are just running around leaking people's kompromat.
First though, we have to find out who that person is. Lawsuits commence!
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
HONEYPOT ALERT
Nah, he's just going to Truth Social to lure @DevinCow into opening an account...so he can finally get the IPs, etc, and see who TF it is!!
Beware, cow. That grass isn't greener!
OTOH, this allows the rest of us to create a Spartacus moment over at Truth:
I'm Devincow.
No, I'm Devincow.
I'm DevinsCows.
No, I'm DevinsCow.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: HONEYPOT ALERT
I'm Devin Nunes' Cow and so's my wife!
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re: HONEYPOT ALERT
Did you really just call your wife a cow?
Brave man.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
The chance of Nunes getting paid by Trump should be equal to him finding a cow.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re:
So "Don't have a cow" should be taken literally, I presume?
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Doesn’t he realize that it’s all just a grift?
Does he seriously believe that he’s going to make any money from this? From Trump of all people? I hope he’s not an investor too. Not to mention the investigations. As CEO, they’re his problem to deal with? Even for Nunes, this is an extremely strange move.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Doesn’t he realize that it’s all just a grift?
As a farmer alongside of "his" people, he knows that he'll be sitting pretty with this move. And I do hope that he's invested heavily, as that'll be just so much money less he'll have for a defense.
It would be for anyone who isn't addle-pated, you're correct. But obviously you are not of the medical persuasion, or you'd have noted long that this man is second only to #45 in obvious clinical-grade self-delusions.
Who's making book on how long he lasts? I've got a portrait of Ben Franklin that says he'll be gone before Easter. An extra C-note that says he'll take whining to a whole new level, trying to get back into his old seat in the House.
Popcorn futures, indeed!
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Doesn’t he realize that it’s all just a grift?
A grift has winners and losers. The IPO already established a large set of losers, so what's wrong with trying to get a share on the winning action? I mean, Trump cannot blow it all through himself, can he?
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re: Doesn’t he realize that it’s all just a grift?
"what's wrong with trying to get a share on the winning action?"
That should be a good litmus test - if you can't think of a reason why exploiting vulnerable people for profit has any downsides, you probably shouldn't be in public office.
"I mean, Trump cannot blow it all through himself, can he?"
His history suggests that he'll give it a damn good try, and is unlikely to pay his minions if they fail to perform miracles against his best efforts at destruction.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re: Re: Doesn’t he realize that it’s all just a grift?
It takes real skill to drive a casino into bankruptcy. It takes real genius - of sorts - to do it to more than one. Do you think he'll stop at casinos? He had a good go at the United States, after all - so what's a mere "social media" site?
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re: Re: Re: Doesn’t he realize that it’s all just a grif
He'll bankrupt anything eventually, because he's not trying to run a sustainable long-term business, he's out for grift and profit and leaving other people liable for the costs along the way.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
So he's leaving a high-paying no-show government job to run a non-profit that he won't be paid for (ask Rudy)? SMART!
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: [getting paid]
It is true that Trump does not have the best record of paying his minions, flunkies, and materialmen for his golf course. However, it is likely that the SPAC which is ``merging'' with the web site company will have money.
After all, getting money is the purpose of these funky SPAC mergers.
The likely intended use of money would be to pay employees, buy equipment, and rent space in hosting facilities. Employees, equipment vendors, and colo operators all expect to be paid. The employees can be strung along for a little while, but equipment vendors typically expect payment before the goods ship, and the facilities can pull the plug in a hurry if the checks do not clear.
If some grifting politician diverts the SPAC money, chances are pretty good that the financial wizards behind the SPAC will be all over him, like tax collectors on a newly-minted widow.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
"Note to Devin: you can't sue the SEC for defamation."
Shh!! Don't tell him, we need all of the entertainment we can get.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
"Devin Nunes Retires From Congress"
And nothing of value was lost.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re:
If only he'd take Josh Hawley with him...
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re:If only he'd take
and Marjorie Taylor Green and Jim Jordan and, and Matt Gaetz and, and, and .... John Steele. OOPS .. sorry, Got excited.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re: Re:If only he'd take
You forgot Ted Cruz and Mitch McConnell.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re: Re:If only he'd take
John Steele is, admittedly, on par with Hawley when it comes to being an outrageous asshole leveraging the most deplorable of people's motives as his mechanism of choice for grifting...
...But last I checked he's still in jail.
Damn, now I'm imagining Nunes chaining up the bars of a jail cell window to a a herd of cows trying to spring Steele...cue tumbleweeds and a sad harmocia in the background...
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Or will he prove himself to be a hypocrite
Well DUH.
How long will it take Nunes to recognize this simple fact?
About 4 days before the heat death of the universe.
And will it happen before or after Trump fires him and stabs him in the back?
He is a bootlicker, he will thank him for stabbing him in the back and ask for another. He knows that Trump commands the Q and no one wants Q focused on them, so he will just slide away with a whimper to avoid that fate. (I mean Meadows is now claiming that his book has lies in it to save himself).
Devin thinks he is the smartest person in the room, STOP LAUGHING ITS SAD!!, and that unlike all of the others Trumps fucked over he will avoid that fate... perhaps Biss has already drafted the lolsuit.
OMG imagine the comedy Biss vs Trumps legal team... comedy gold.
One also wonders if the Jan 6 committee is gonna ask Lev what he knows about what Devin was doing in the lead up to trying to overthrow the government.
This sad little cowpoke is being put out to pasture, can't wait to see the lawsuit after he ruins his shoes by not looking where hes stepping.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Will the real devin nunes please stand up?
I suspect this will mean we lose Koby as a commenter, as Trump expects his lapdogs to shill for him full time.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
"The time has come to reopen the Internet and allow for the free flow of ideas and expression without censorship"
...unless someone's mean to me, in which case they need to be censored immediately! I assume he's using the definition of "censorship" set by the current breed of thin-skinned cowards that populate the right wing - they need to have the rights to say anything they want to say, but you should not have the right to say what you want to say.
"I’m humbled and honored President Trump has asked me to lead the mission and the world class team that will deliver on this promise"
I'm... actually quite happy about this as well. Congress loses one of its more useless bullies in order to go into a business he's already demonstrated incompetence in, thus ensuring that this new venture is likely to join the long list of Trump failures that were torpedoed by placing ideology above competence. I'm OK with this, especially if his former district use the vacancy to make a positive move (which remains to be seen since IIRC there was some gerrymandering involved in Nunes becoming such a regular incumbent.)
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
A Professional Manure Superspreader
Mr Nunes is off to milk political mushrooms!
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: A Professional Manure Superspreader
I think Mr. Nunes's cow left something other than milk on top of those mushrooms. Just saying.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
"Note to Devin: you can't sue the SEC for defamation."
Sure you can, when you have deep pockets backing you to file as many ridiculous lawsuits as you can churn out.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
This will leave a void a congress
Who is going to rename our Post Offices now?
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
which way is it
I thought the Republicans were against, uh, no, in favor of, no, against, uh ... no, in favor of, um, errrr.... against censorship?
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: which way is it
They're in favour of their own ability to censor, but wildly opposed for them to have any restrictions themselves.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Resignation shows lack of commitment to the people. Prime Trump management candidate.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
"There's all sorts of speculation about why Nunes would do this now."
Hmmm. He's looking for somewhere he can do the maximum damage, having exhausted most of his possibilities as a mere congress-critter? Just speculating, you understand, so don't have a cow.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
I'm surprised Nunes is going to work for Pravda Social, instead of making his own...Ruminant Social.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
The Congressman and the former President have a lot in common. They both have a habit of bringing frivolous lawsuits over imagined wrongs and losing on a repetitive basis.
Should Truth Social survive it's first year; I foresee gangs of unhappy overworked and unpaid lawyers complicating both their lives.
Devin the lapdog thinks it's a boon from a grateful master.
Knowing Trump; it's more likely to be a boondoggle, and Nunes will get an up close and personal look at the underside of a bus.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: underside of a bus
There apparently was a CIA agent who was underworked, overweight and overpaid, so his station manager threw him to the wolves, after first luring him to Yosemite. The wolves all died of massive cholesterol poisoning, much to the outrage of the park rangers. The station manager's staff didn't throw him to the park rangers, because park rangers must maintain a sane diet, and overweight, underworked, overpaid CIA station managers aren't on that diet. So his staff threw him under a bus - and the bus died of massive cholesterol poisoning.
Nunes is likely to kill off any bus he is thrown under, for exactly the same reason. We most devoutly hope there would be no chain reaction of buses dying off from contagious cholesterol poisoning due to overweight, overpaid, underworking US congresscritters being thrown underneath them ... the future of public transport is at stake - which would be burnt the following day, no doubt ... :)
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Goa Escort Service
Fresh call girls come to our Goa escorts agency, which are very beautiful, and sexy. Call Girls kill their client with their own actions and then the client gets seduced and does not stop from having sex. https://goa-escort-service.com/
https://goa-escort-service.com/goa-girls-escorts-service/index.html
https://goa-escort-service.com/goa-call-girl/index.html
https://goa-escort-service.com/aerocity-girl s-escorts-service/index.html
https://goa-escort-service.com/manali-girls-escorts-service/index.html
https://goa-escort-service.com/lucknow-girls-escorts-service/index.html
https://goa-escort-service.c om/delhi-girls-escorts-service/index.html
https://goa-escort-service.com/gurgaon-girls-escorts-servi ce/index.html
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Speech
This article is seen in the dictionary under the definition of hate speech.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Speech
Well at least you tried... sort of.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
He doesn't have to try, he just opens his mouth and shit pours out. That is what happens when you have had your head so far up your ass you can see daylight again.
Just flag and move on.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Speech
One day you guys should share the dictionary you refer to, because it always seems to have wildly definitions to the ones everyone else uses.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re: Speech
different definitions...
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Re: Speech
"One day you guys should share the dictionary you refer to"
Mein Kampf, published 1925. Not everyone's choice of dictionary but given how many concepts Restless94110, Shel10 and Koby keep quoting from it I'd say that's where these people get the idea that someone throwing you out of their property for griefing ze jews...i mean, black people...would be an assault on their personal integrity and rights.
[ link to this | view in chronology ]
Re: Speech
Wasn't discovery supposed to be fun broski?
[ link to this | view in chronology ]