DeFazio condemns tactics of Robert Mercer, Cambridge Analytica

 The news breaking in recent days about Cambridge Analytica is astounding and infuriating. The dishonest data firm founded by Robert Mercer and Steve Bannon has been using social media accounts to harvest data from millions of Americans to influence elections.
 Mercer's goal: elect politicians to support his extreme political agenda and work to increase corporate profits. In 2010, Mercer spent over half a million dollars backing my opponent Art Robinson, giving me the honor of becoming the first Member of Congress to be attacked by a Wall Street backed super PAC. After Robert Mercer founded Cambridge Analytica, 
   Art Robinson became the data firm's first federal political client in the United States. Even back then, it was clear that they were up to no good but I knew that we were only seeing a small part of the picture. 
  Four years later, we're seeing a clearer picture and know that they:
  • Illegally harvested data from 50 million Facebook users.
  • Interfered with elections around the world.
  • Offered to entrap and blackmail their clients' opponents. 
  Dishonest. Anti-democratic. Corrupt. Unethical.
  It's pretty scary what we're up against but I know that Oregon's 4th Congressional District won't be manipulated by Robert Mercer and Art Robinson because you won't allow it.

  – Peter DeFazio
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