Democratic House Oversight Committee Chair Carolyn Maloney sent a letter to FBI Director Christopher Wray requested an investigation into the role that social media platform Parler played in the January 6th domestic terrorist attack at the Capitol, NBC News reports.
“In the days and weeks leading up to the siege, press reports detailed the rise of violent threats on Parler against state elected officials for their role in certifying the election results and later against the Congress and its constitutional role in counting electoral votes,” the letter states.
Maloney goes on to cite specific posts on the social media site which call for people like the Proud Boys to take action against Congress. Maloney also asks the FBI to investigate the financial backing for Parler and its ties to Russian disinformation campaigns. She notes that Parler CEO John Matze got funding for the venture shortly after he took a trip to Russia with his wife, a Russian national whose family has ties to the government of Vladimir Putin.
Parler went off-line last week as vendors rejected the business of the conservative-favored platform, which does not moderate comments and thereby allows threats and violent rhetoric to proliferate on its site.