What does the law say about domestic covert influence operations?
I saw Rep. Massie's proposed "Repeal the Smith-Mundt Modernization Act" from Oct. 2025. Found it because I was randomly curious about what stops the U.S. government from doing covert domestic influence operations. Bot networks arguing specific talking point, bot networks amplifying specific influencers/speakers, circulating fake/manipulated media, etc. The text of the argument in that link seems to suggest we don't have domestic protections against that. Or don't have adequate protections. Is that accurate or stretching the truth (e.g. it's allowed against foreign targets but Americans may encounter it)?
u/ThePanicButon — 4 days ago