New Mexico officials accused Facebook and Instagram of creating a breeding ground for predators who target children for human trafficking — while enabling the distribution of child pornography — according to a lawsuit filed against Meta Platforms and CEO Mark Zuckerberg. According to the 288-page civil lawsuit filed Tuesday in a New Mexico state court‚ the social media giant allegedly exposed young users to sexual content‚ opened the door for adult strangers to contact them‚ and subjected children to the risk of abuse or exploitation. “Meta’s business model of profit over child safety and business practices of misrepresenting the amount of dangerous material and conduct to which its platforms expose children violates New Mexico law‚” the complaint says. “Meta should be held accountable for the harms it has inflicted on New Mexico’s children.” Attorney General Raúl Torrez said his office conducted an “undercover investigation” into the social media platforms that found Facebook and Instagram have certain child exploitative content more than ten times the amount shared on Pornhub and OnlyFans. “Our investigation into Meta’s social media platforms demonstrates that they are not safe spaces for children but rather prime locations for predators to trade child pornography and solicit minors for sex‚” Torrez said in a news release. Torrez‚ who specializes in prosecuting internet crimes against children‚ further accused Zuckerberg and Meta executives of failing to implement changes to prevent the sexual exploitation of children on their products while being aware of the severe harm it can cause to users struggling with addiction or other mental health issues. “Despite repeated assurances to Congress and the public that they can be trusted to police themselves‚ it is clear that Meta’s executives continue to prioritize engagement and ad revenue over the safety of the most vulnerable members of our society‚” Torrez said. Meta responded to the allegations‚ stating that the platforms do take precautionary measures to “help root out predators.” “Child exploitation is a horrific crime and online predators are determined criminals‚” Meta told CNBC in a statement‚ adding the social media company uses “sophisticated technology‚ hires child safety experts‚ reports content to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children‚ and share information and tools with other companies and law enforcement‚ including state attorneys general.” Meta reportedly said the company disabled more than half a million accounts for violating policies in connection to child sexual exploitation. New Mexico officials seek civil penalties‚ $5‚000 for each alleged violation of New Mexico’s Unfair Practices Act‚ and an order urging the company from “engaging in unfair‚ unconscionable‚ or deceptive practices.” CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILYWIRE+ APP State officials reportedly also want Meta to apply effective age verification tools to the platforms‚ improve systems that detect and remove child sexual abuse material‚ and address the issues that allegedly amplify the material. The latest filing against the social media giant comes after the attorney generals of 33 U.S. states filed a lawsuit against Meta and its Instagram social media platform in October‚ accusing the multinational technology conglomerate of contributing to the mental health crisis in American youth by making them addicted to its products and violated federal children’s online privacy and state consumer protection laws. Eight other states and Washington‚ D.C.‚ filed similar lawsuits. Meta said in a statement to outlets that it shares “the attorneys general’s commitment to providing teens with safe‚ positive experiences online‚ and have already introduced over 30 tools to support teens and their families.” “We’re disappointed that instead of working productively with companies across the industry to create clear‚ age-appropriate standards for the many apps teens use‚ the attorneys general have chosen this path‚” the company added. If the states succeed‚ Meta could be forced to pay massive fines and change how it advertises and designs its platforms to the public.

Michigan state government agencies must move to 100% “zero-emission” vehicles (ZEVs) by 2040‚ per an executive order signed by Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer on Tuesday. Whitmer’s order requires state agencies to shift the state government’s fleet of around 9‚000 vehicles to electric beginning with light-duty cars by 2033 and moving on to medium- and heavy-duty vehicles by 2040. The governor’s directive came just a week after she signed one of the most extreme green energy bills in the nation‚ requiring utility providers to transition to completely carbon-free energy generation by the end of the next decade. “Michigan is on the cutting-edge of mobility and electrification‚” Whitmer’s executive directive stated. “Our world-leading auto industry is making the switch to electric‚ and we continue to attract battery‚ semiconductor‚ and clean energy investments from other states and nations. We must usher the future of mobility and clean energy into Michigan by winning projects and leading by example in state government.” “Getting this done will help drive demand of Michigan-made electric vehicles‚ lower gas and maintenance costs for the state since ZEVs cost far less to fuel and maintain and reduce air and noise pollution in our communities‚” Whitmer added in a statement. The executive order was short on details about the cost of transitioning the entire state government’s fleet of vehicles to electric. A 2021 report from the Michigan Department of Technology‚ Management‚ and Budget stated that the Michigan government has 8‚788 on-road vehicles‚ which include dozens of buses and semi-trucks. Among the state agencies included in Whitmer’s directive is the Michigan State Police‚ which uses hundreds of coupes and sedans and over 1‚000 SUVs for law enforcement. State agencies can request exemptions from the directive for certain vehicles‚ but must “offer alternative emission reduction options including hybrids‚” according to Whitmer’s press release. Michigan House Republican Leader Matt Hall slammed Whitmer’s EV directive‚ telling The Daily Wire that the Democrats’ EV and green energy push is hurting the automotive industry and hard-working Michiganders. “Joe Biden and Gretchen Whitmer’s green energy schemes are accelerating the decline of Michigan’s automotive manufacturing industry‚ and the governor’s decision to replace all of Michigan’s state fleet with electric vehicles is just the latest step on this destructive path‚” Hall said. “Michigan families have determined that EVs are too expensive and unreliable for them‚ which is why these vehicles are just sitting on car lots around the state.” Whitmer said the switch to EVs will help Michigan car manufacturers that are rapidly moving to EV production as the Biden administration pushes American car companies and consumers to get on board with its plan to have “50 percent of all new vehicle sales be electric by 2030.” Of the nearly 9‚000 vehicles operated by Michigan state government agencies‚ only three are electric‚ according to Whitmer’s communications director Bobby Leddy‚ The Detroit News reported. CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILYWIRE+ APP The governor’s executive directive is on par with her push for Michigan car manufacturers to embrace EVs as the future of transportation. In February‚ Whitmer announced plans for an EV battery plant in Marshall‚ Michigan‚ saying it is “expected to create 2‚500 good-paying jobs” while helping “support Ford’s goal of producing two million electric vehicles annually by 2026.” That plan‚ however‚ came to a screeching halt in September when Ford paused the construction of the Marshall battery plant. Now‚ Ford says it’s scaling back its commitment to the Marshall plant‚ cutting 800 jobs and over $1 billion. Ford‚ one of Michigan’s “big three” car manufacturers‚ recently received a $9.2 billion loan from the Biden administration intended to help construct three electric vehicle battery plants — none of which are in Michigan — after the motor company projected the EV push would cost it $3 billion in 2023. That projection was bumped up to $4.5 billion in losses over EVs a few months later‚ meaning Ford lost around $32‚000 for every EV it sold during the second quarter of 2023. “Democrats’ artificially accelerated shift to EVs will eliminate Michigan jobs at existing factories‚” Hall told The Daily Wire. “And their mandates for unreliable green energy will lead to higher electricity prices on manufacturers — imposing additional costs on Michigan’s automotive industry that will kill more Michigan jobs and move more manufacturing overseas.”

'Will not be tolerated'

Ahh ... only in the world of hockey

the commission should build a framework that drives toward economic growth

'You don’t think the progressive left has any culpability'

'People that are going to vote against NDAA now'

'That just doesn’t at all seem fair in any way‚ shape‚ or form'

$31 billion in stocks and bonds

'Parents are tired of the secrets'