Samantha Vinograd, until recently of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), also asserted that these days, because of what she considers to be election disinformation, “there is an unprecedented level of physical threats” while the US information ecosystem is “incredibly vulnerable.”

Dramatic and alarmist statements like this may be necessary to justify the rest of Vinograd’s message, which in effect attacks free speech, as it is legally protected in the US.

Appearing on CBS, Vinograd – who was until last December Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security for Counterterrorism and Threat Prevention – warned that the First Amendment might protect free speech, but that engaging in free speech is apparently not “cost-free.”

The Face the Nation hosts framed the problem as, essentially, federal laws (the Constitution) protecting speech, but the damage being done at the state level – and then what states, who organize elections, can do to fix that “problem.”

Spreading lies about candidates, as they put it, was given as an example of legal, protected speech becoming an issue by having the ability to create “a threat at the state level” – and asked Vinograd who she thought was supposed to correct the situation.

Vinograd – who has been bouncing between various administrations (including those of Bush and Obama, and private companies like Goldman Sachs and Stripe before landing at Biden’s DHS) – seemed to suggest that Big Tech (i.e., social media companies) should be assisting the government.

The federal government said Vinograd, “should not be the omnipresent fact checker for the American people.”

And even though, according to her, the government is debunking information about elections that is deemed to be inaccurate, social media companies “should be thinking about what kinds of election disinformation violate their terms of service.”

It’s difficult not to take this as a not-so-veiled added pressure on social platforms to not only continue with censoring content but perhaps expand it in terms of what qualifies as election disinformation.

Either way, Vinograd is in favor of enlisting “every American” to help out as well (although it is not clear in what specific way), invoking even the concept of patriotic duty.

And Vinograd did not miss the opportunity to assert that election misinformation threats are now of such magnitude as to present a national security issue.

If you’re tired of censorship and surveillance, join Reclaim The Net.

The rapid evolution of the threat environment requires the Department to evolve along with it, said Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas in an April 21 press release.

The task force will seek to integrate AI to enhance the integrity of America’s supply chains, identify and interdict the flow of precursor chemicals to counter the flow of fentanyl, and target criminal networks, the statement said. According to U.S. authorities, China is the primary source of precursor chemicals.

The department will also use AI tools to rescue victims of online child sexual abuse and exploitation as well as apprehend the perpetrators of such crimes, according to the statement.

The department will work with academia, industry, and other government partners to assess how AI can be used to secure critical infrastructure, it said.

“The profound evolution in the homeland security threat environment, changing at a pace faster than ever before, has required our Department of Homeland Security to evolve along with it,” said Mayorkas.

The United States must address the multiple ways in which AI will “drastically alter the threat landscape,” he said on April 21.

“Our department will lead in the responsible use of AI to secure the homeland and in defending against the malicious use of this transformational technology. As we do this, we will ensure that our use of AI is rigorously tested to avoid bias and disparate impact.”

AI: A Double-Edged Sword

The Homeland Security Department’s integration of AI into government operations comes as experts warn about the tech being a threat to human freedoms in the hands of oppressive administrations.

“AI-enabled tech will be capable of surveilling, micro-targeting, and influencing democratic populations in ways that were previously impossible through traditional state monitoring and privately-developed social media algorithms,” Anders Corr, principal at Corr Analytics, said in a Jan. 4 commentary.

“Through micro-targeting, micro-production, and micro-delivery of subtle propaganda, AI could determine democratic decision-making outcomes like at no other time in history, thereby making those formerly democratic processes undemocratic.”

The Biden administration has already begun integrating AI with biased ideologies in government operations. In February, Biden approved an executive order directing federal agencies to use AI to achieve “equity” objectives.

“When designing, developing, acquiring, and using artificial intelligence and automated systems in the Federal Government, agencies shall do so, consistent with applicable law, in a manner that advances equity,” the order states.

Derived from Marxist ideology, equity is different from the concept of equality, where everyone in a society is treated on an equal footing, and given the same level of treatment regardless of differences in race, religion, and other factors.

Equity, on the other hand, focuses on the forced redistribution of resources. In a socialist equitable scenario, privileges are distributed based on perceived imbalances. Such decisions are typically undertaken by an unelected group of progressive advocates.

Evolutionary biologist Colin Wright, a founding editor of pro-free speech publication Reality’s Last Stand, has warned against such initiatives.

“Biden is not a moderate. This is a legal sprint to inject as much radical ideology as broadly and as deeply as possible in our government. This cannot be allowed. If Republicans take office, they must fully root out all of this ideological and social cancer,” he said in a Feb. 21 Twitter post.

The Race for AI Supremacy

In the field of AI, the United States could face significant threats from China. A March 2021 report (pdf) issued by the National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence (NCSAI) warns that “America is not prepared to defend or compete in the AI era. This is the tough reality we must face. And it is this reality that demands comprehensive, whole-of-nation action.”

The report points out that the competition in the field of artificial intelligence is also a “values competition.” China’s domestic use of AI is a “chilling precedent for anyone … who cherishes individual liberty,” it said.

China’s “employment of AI as a tool of repression and surveillance—at home and, increasingly, abroad—is a powerful counterpoint to how we believe AI should be used.”

“We must win the AI competition that is intensifying strategic competition with China. China’s plans, resources, and progress should concern all Americans. … We take seriously China’s ambition to surpass the United States as the world’s AI leader within a decade,” the report said.

Biden had earlier called this decade a “decisive” one for the world where generative AI and threats posed by the Chinese regime would influence the world.

While announcing AI integration, the Homeland Department also introduced new measures to counter Chinese threats, including defending critical infrastructure, disrupting the global fentanyl supply chain, and protecting against Beijing’s “malign economic influence.”

Article cross-posted from our premium news partners at The Epoch Times.