State Dept closes misinformation center meant to counter Russia, terrorist orgs

The State Department shut down an office that was created to combat misinformation from terrorist organizations and authoritarian regimes

In his announcement, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said it had been used to hinder Americans' freedom of speech during the Biden administration

Rubio stated, quote, The Center spent millions of dollars to actively silence and censor the voices of Americans they were supposed to be serving

This is antithetical to the very principles we should be upholding and inconceivable it was taking place in America

The Department's Counter Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference, formerly known as the Global Engagement Center, was created by President Obama in 2016 via executive order

According to Rubio's statement, it costs more than $50 million per year to run

President Obama's executive order stated the center's purpose would be to diminish the influence of international terrorist organizations like ISIS, al-Qaeda, and other violent extremists abroad

Conservatives contend it censored the free speech of Americans. Quote, have been slandered, fired, charged, and even jailed for simply voicing their opinions

That is not an America our founding fathers would recognize, Rubio said

Conservative organizations, including America First Legal, filed lawsuits and FOIA requests accusing the GEC of silencing legitimate political speech on issues of great public interest

including COVID, vaccine mandates, and election integrity. The GEC was also accused of partnering

with non-governmental organizations and social media companies, which led to suppression of

speech. Ned Price, who was the State Department spokesperson during the Biden administration

responded to Rubio's announcement and the accusations against the GEC, quote, this is a deeply misleading and unserious portrayal of an organization focused on identifying

foreign, primarily Russian, disinformation operations. The GEC was officially closed in December 2024, but a report in the Washington Examiner revealed the Biden administration

reopened it as the State Department's counter foreign information and manipulation and

interference using the same employees. I'm Ray Bogan for Straight Arrow News

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