JD Vance, D.J. Swearingen: Google 'suppressing' politicians like Ted Cruz, 'COVID treatments' supporters

Note from Opinion Editor Amelia Robinson: This is a submitted column by a candidate running for election. Its publication does not constitute the Dispatch Editorial Board's endorsement of the views expressed.

A case, unfolding in Delaware County Court of Common Pleas, could curtail Google’s worst anti-consumer practices. Attorney General Dave Yost has wisely initiated a suit asking the court to regulate Google as a “common carrier,” the legal category that applies to trains, airlines, and telephones.

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Common carriers have a legal duty to serve all, on the same terms and conditions, without discrimination.

We believe Google should be held to the same standard.

Regulating Google as a common carrier is an essential first step to a more fair internet. That is why we, working with the Claremont Institute, filed an amicus in support of the State of Ohio in this lawsuit.

Prohibiting Google from discriminating against competitors in displaying search results will protect competition in Ohio.

Google should not be able to use its dominance to prefer its own businesses to the detriment of competition.

But while this suit is necessary, it is only the first step.

Google and its subsidiary YouTube have a long odious record of discriminating against and suppressing political figures and viewpoints they dislike—from Sen. Ted Cruz and Rep. Darrell Issa to pro-life advocates and supporters of COVID treatments.

More: Ohio sues Google, seeks to declare the internet company a public utility

As a common carrier, Google will be obligated to refrain from discrimination not only against competitors, but also against users.

This means that Google and its subsidiary, YouTube, will no longer be able to discriminate on the basis of their political or religious views. A favorable court ruling could be the beginning of a sea of change for internet fairness in Ohio—indeed the country.

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Ensuring fairness on our dominant internet platforms is essential to our democracy.

As the Supreme Court has declared, the internet is today’s “modern town square.” All citizens and all political views must be treated in a non-discriminatory within that square.

Otherwise, our democratic discourse will become slanted, and we will become even more polarized as a nation.

Google has claimed in court no precedent exists “in which a court held that a company is a public utility, and therefore had to comply with duties that were created by the court, as opposed to the legislature.”

That’s not true.

Courts in the past often declared entities common carriers and the imposed common law duties, such as non-discrimination and interconnection—precisely the issues in this case.

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In Ohio, it is the job of courts to determine which industries are common carriers. While it is true that in recent years, regulatory agencies have made most decisions about common carriers, no Ohio court has ever disclaimed the judicial duty to regulate common carriers, nor has the Legislature limited this duty.

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America has a long tradition of ensuring competitive markets and that dominant internet firms treat users and competitors fairly and in a non-discriminatory manner. In earlier years, common carrier laws and other consumer protections protected farmers and livestock producers from unscrupulous and exploitative behavior by railroads.

Today, different network industries threaten Ohioan industries and jobs. But we must have the same courage to respond.

JD Vance is running for the U.S. Senate from Ohio. He grew up in Middletown, Ohio, and wrote the bestselling book "Hillbilly Elegy."

D.J. Swearingen, R-Huron, is a member of the Ohio House of Representatives, serving the 89th district since 2019.

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Why do JD Vance and D.J Swearingen say Google should be a common carrier