GOP Representatives Call on Bill Barr To Drop the Hammer on Obscene Pornography: Report
Citing the damage America’s pervasive pornography industry is doing to women and children, four Republican members of Congress are calling for the federal government to use existing obscenity laws to crack down on pornography, according to a new report.
The legislators issued a letter to Attorney General William Barr urging the Department of Justice to enforce laws that are violated by hardcore pornography, with a focus on pornography involving children, according to National Review.
The letter was signed by Reps. Jim Banks of Indiana, Mark Meadows of North Carolina, Vicky Hartzler of Missouri and Brian Babin of Texas.
“The Internet and other evolving technologies are fueling the explosion of obscene pornography by making it more accessible and visceral. This explosion in pornography coincides with an increase in violence towards women and an increase in the volume of human trafficking as well as child pornography,” the representatives wrote in the letter.
The four Republicans went on to claim that the damage done by pornography is widespread.
“Victims are not limited to those directly exploited, however, and include society writ large. This phenomenon is especially harmful to youth, who are being exposed to obscene pornography at exceptionally younger ages,” they wrote.
To remedy the damage, the representatives urged the Department of Justice to step up its efforts against pornography, in contrast to the actions of the Obama administration, which under former Attorney General Eric Holder disbanded its Obscenity Prosecution Task Force.
“Given the pervasiveness of obscenity it’s our recommendation that you declare the prosecution of obscene pornography a criminal justice priority and urge your U.S. Attorneys to bring prosecutions against the major producers and distributors of such material,” the representatives wrote, noting that 15 state legislatures have already declared pornography to be a public health crisis, in part due to its impact on children.
In a comment to National Review, Banks decried the appalling side effects of the uniquity of pornography.
“As online obscenity and pornography consumption have increased, so too has violence towards women. Overall volume of human trafficking has increased and is now the third-largest criminal enterprise in the world,” he wrote in an email.
“Child pornography is on the rise as one of the fastest-growing online businesses with an annual revenue over $3 billion,” Banks added.
“The United States has nearly 50% of all commercialized child pornography websites. Pornography is ubiquitous in our culture and our children are being exposed at younger ages. Nine in every ten boys under the age of 18 have seen porn. Children are struggling with pornography addiction.”
In October, the Department of Justice announced a major bust in which more than 300 people were were arrested and charged with offenses related to child pornography.
“Darknet sites that profit from the sexual exploitation of children are among the most vile and reprehensible forms of criminal behavior,” Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division said in a statement.
“This Administration will not allow child predators to use lawless online spaces as a shield. Today’s announcement demonstrates that the Department of Justice remains firmly committed to working closely with our partners in South Korea and around the world to rescue child victims and bring to justice the perpetrators of these abhorrent crimes.”
“Through the sophisticated tracing of bitcoin transactions … special agents were able to determine the location of the Darknet server, identify the administrator of the website and ultimately track down the website server’s physical location in South Korea,” Chief Don Fort of Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation said.
“This largescale criminal enterprise that endangered the safety of children around the world is no more. Regardless of the illicit scheme, and whether the proceeds are virtual or tangible, we will continue to work with our federal and international partners to track down these disgusting organizations and bring them to justice.”
In 2016, then-presidential candidate Donald Trump signed a pledge to crack down on obscenity online.
“If elected President of the United State of America, I promise to … [u]phold the rule of law by aggressively enforce existing federal laws to prevent the sexual exploitation of children online, including the federal obscenity laws, child pornography laws, sexual predation laws and the sex trafficking laws,” the pledge read.
Barr, who served with the Justice Department under former President George H.W. Bush, vigorously prosecuted pornography crimes during that time, according to the Washington Examiner.
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