A U.S. congresswoman on Feb. 8 said she was left injured by a COVID-19 vaccine.
Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) disclosed details of her health complications during a hearing with former Twitter executives while decrying how Twitter had censored posts from medical experts, including Dr. Jay Bhattacharya and Martin Kulldorff.
“I, along with many Americans, have long-term effects from COVID. Not only was I a long hauler, but I have effects from the vaccine. It wasn’t the first shot but it was the second shot that I now developed asthma that has never gone away,” Mace said in Washington.
“I have tremors in my left hand, and I have the occasional heart pain that no doctor can explain—and I’ve had a battery of tests.”
Mace’s office declined to provide any medical records to support the testimony.
Case reports indicate that asthma may be induced or worsened by COVID-19 vaccination while neurological issues and heart problems are known side effects of the shots.
Mace said she was alarmed by how Twitter limited or hid posts such as one from Kulldorff that said people at high risk from COVID-19 should get vaccinated but that people who had infection-induced immunity and children didn’t need a shot.
“I have great regrets about getting the shot because of the health issues that I now have, that I don’t think are ever going to go away,” Mace said. “And I know that I’m not the only American who has those kinds of concerns.”
She asked Vijaya Gadde, Twitter’s former executive for legal, public policy, and trust and safety, whether Gadde had been to medical school. Gadde said no. Mace then asked why Twitter officials believed they had the expertise to censor opinions from medical experts.
“Our policies regarding COVID were designed to protect individuals,” Gadde said.
“You guys censored Harvard-educated doctors, Stanford-educated doctors, doctors that are educated in the best places in the world, and you silenced those voices,” Mace said.
One email, for instance, stated that Kulldorff was spreading “false information regarding the efficacy of the COVID-19 vaccines, which goes against CDC [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] guidelines,” and officials ultimately labeled the post “misleading.”
Other documents have shown the White House and Big Tech companies were in close contact regarding taking down posts and suspending or banning users, Mace noted, asking whether the U.S. government ever pressured Twitter to moderate or censor posts.
“We have a program,” Gadde said. “We received legal demands to remove content from the platform from the U.S. government and governments all around the world.”
Rep. Glenn Grothman (R-Wis.) later questioned why Twitter took action against prominent doctors and radio hosts in his state because they offered information that contradicted guidance from U.S. authorities such as the CDC.
“Could you comment on why you would take somebody off a platform, or why a distinguished doctor would be considered something that the public as a whole couldn’t hear their version of events?” Grothman asked.
None of the former executives answered.
