Trump vows to seek criminal charges against Google if re-elected...
Former President Donald Trump has accused Google of unfairly favoring his 2024 election opponent, Kamala Harris, by displaying negative news articles about him. In response, Trump threatened to direct the justice department to pursue criminal charges against Google if he is re-elected as President.
Trump's complaint, posted on Truth Social, alleged that Google illegally manipulated search results to show negative stories about him while only displaying positive stories about Harris. He called this activity illegal and expressed hope that the Justice Department would criminally prosecute Google for interfering in elections. If not, Trump stated that he would request their prosecution after winning the election and becoming President of the United States.
Google, however, has denied manipulating search results to benefit any particular party. The company emphasized that both campaign websites consistently appear at the top of search results for relevant queries. Despite Google's statement, conservatives have long criticized the search engine for allegedly favoring Democrats in its results.
Conservative Complaints and Allegations
Conservative groups, such as the rightwing Media Research Center, have previously claimed that Google's search results are biased towards Democrats. The Trump campaign has also raised concerns about the Harris campaign utilizing Google's "sponsored" feature to promote positive news coverage, sometimes rewriting headlines to favor Harris.
Trump's threat against Google is part of a pattern of him vowing to prosecute perceived opponents. In another Truth Social post, Trump warned of pursuing criminal charges against individuals involved in alleged election fraud if he wins the presidential election in November. He also called for the criminal prosecution of former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi for her handling of the January 6 Capitol attack.
During a campaign rally in Michigan, Trump further urged an investigation into Pelosi and her husband over stock sales before the justice department's antitrust lawsuit against a credit-card company. These incidents reflect Trump's willingness to use the power of the presidency to confront those he views as adversaries.
