By Steve Neavling
ticklethewire.com
Russia’s aggressive and surreptitious campaign to influence the U.S. presidential election included troves of misleading and often vicious social media ads targeting Muslims, Black Lives Matter and illegal immigrants.
Members of the House Intelligence Committee released thousands of advertisements on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Google linked to a Russian group called the Internet Research Agency. The ads, initially turned over by Facebook, reached as many as 126 million users, the Associated Press reports.
One ad for an event called, “Support Hillary. Save American Muslims,” included a photo of Donald Trump’s Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton. Another called for a burqa ban in American, suggesting the Muslim apparel could be used to hide a terrorist.
Another ad by “Army of Jesus” calls Clinton “Satan” and encourages Americans to elect “a president with godly moral principles.”
Lawmakers slammed the social media companies for failing to act before the election.
“I don’t think you get it. I think the fact that you’re general counsels, you defend your company,” Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) said at the hearing about Russia’s use of social media in the 2016 election, Politico reports. “What we’re talking about is the beginning of cyberwarfare.”
Allegations that Trump’s campaign colluded with Russia to sabotage Clinton is at the center of a growing special counsel investigation that has already resulted in charges against three campaign aides and includes ongoing inquiries into whether Trump obstructed justice by firing then-FBI Director James Comey for refusing to back down from an investigation into Trump aides.
