Politics

Biden Is Trying To Capitalize On Reports That Russian Trolls Are Targeting His Campaign

No featured image available

Former Vice President Joe Biden is developing a new strategy ahead of the 2020 election and it involves fundraising off of recent reports that Russian trolls are targeting his campaign for president.

“The Russian Facebook trolls are back — and this time, they’re going after my campaign. We cannot let 2016 repeat itself,” Biden wrote on Twitter Monday after Facebook reportedly stopped a Russian troll outfit from meddling in the 2020 election. He then asked his supporters to “chip in $5” to help fight back.

The Russian Facebook trolls are back — and this time, they’re going after my campaign. We cannot let 2016 repeat itself.

Chip in $5 to our rapid response fund to help us fight back against their lies and foreign interference in our elections: https://t.co/6ehaYAjgxA https://t.co/9Zllaa9a5U

— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) October 21, 2019

Facebook pulled down Russia-linked accounts that criticized Biden and praised Trump. The social media company said the campaign was similar to that used by the Kremlin ahead of the 2016 election.

CEO Mark Zuckerberg addressed the report in an NBC interview Monday.

“They are highly sophisticated,” he said, referring to the Internet Research Agency, which meddled in the 2016 race and is suspected of doing the same in the upcoming election. “They signal that these nation-states intend to be active in the upcoming elections.”

Biden thanked Facebook for shutting down the accounts but questioned Facebook’s willingness to secure future elections.

“Unfortunately, like the Kremlin, Donald Trump continues to benefit from spreading false information, [and] all the while Facebook profits from amplifying his lies and debunked conspiracy theories on their platform,” TJ Ducklo, a Biden campaign spokesman, said in a press statement.

Ducklo added: “If Facebook is truly committed to protecting the integrity of our elections, they would immediately take down Trump’s ads that attempt to gaslight the American people.”