Heinrich Statement On Facebook Announcement On Election Meddling

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), a member of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, issued the following statement today after Facebook announced that it removed 32 Pages and accounts from Facebook and Instagram that showed connections to and activity consistent with previous Russian disinformation efforts:

"Russia's efforts to divide our country by weaponizing social media is full-on information warfare. Russia's use of social media and other online forums to influence our elections and undermine public confidence in our democratic institutions and processes means we need companies like Facebook to be part of the solution. I'm pleased that they are stepping up, but we need every platform working closely with the government to coordinate efforts to counter these very real threats. 

"The President's inability to consistently confirm his Intelligence Community's assessment that Russia interfered in the 2016 election and his utter lack of interest in learning how to prevent similar attacks on our nation's democratic institutions make it all the more difficult to take the steps we need to take. But I remain determined to do all I can to inform the American public about the threat and to work with my colleagues to find solutions. We all have a critical role to play in defending our country."