Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., says Democrats are preparing to unleash a wave of subpoenas against technology executives now that the party has taken control of both chambers of Congress.
Responding to a social media post asking, “Live televised trials of Big Tech executives when?” Markey wrote: “They are going to need to plant new forests for all of the subpoenas we’ll be printing.”
Markey is currently the ranking member of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship and also serves on the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. As ranking member, he is positioned to take over as chairman of the small business committee once newly elected Senate Democrats are sworn in in January.
Markey defeated Republican challenger John Deaton by a wide margin in Tuesday’s election and will begin his third Senate term after 37 years in the House of Representatives.
A Long-Running Target: Big Tech
Markey has built a reputation as one of Capitol Hill’s most vocal critics of the technology industry. In July, he released an “AI Accountability Agenda,” a package of legislation designed to curb the power of major tech companies.
He has repeatedly compared the tech industry to oil companies and has pointed to large tech corporations as obstacles to his climate agenda. Markey has also pushed for stricter limits on data center construction, arguing that Congress needs “to make sure these data centers don’t turn into pollution bombs.”
Markey has long championed the Green New Deal. In 2021, he said: “The Green New Deal isn’t just a resolution, it is a revolution. We can transform our economy and our democracy for all Americans by addressing the generational challenge of climate change. We have the technology to do it. We have the economic imperative. We have the moral obligation. We just need the political will.”
Other Democrats Signal the Same Intent
Markey isn’t alone in telegraphing aggressive oversight plans. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., posted a single word on X late Tuesday night: “subpoenas.”
Rep. Robert Garcia, D-Calif., the top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, posted “LAWYER UP” on the same platform.
Markey’s win came as part of a broader Democratic sweep in which the party captured control of both the House and Senate. Markey’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
