Twitter Inc. has permanently banned US President Donald Trump’s personal account for breaking its rules against glorifying violence following the storming of the US Capitol on Wednesday by thousands of his supporters. This is the most high-profile punishment the social media company has ever imposed and marks the end of Trump’s relationship with his favourite social media platform. Trump’s Twitter suspension has been cheered by Hollywood personalities who called it a great move.
Twitter’s suspension comes on the heels of Facebook Inc’s move to block Trump’s account. Twitter had temporarily blocked Trump’s account on Wednesday and warned that additional violations by the president’s accounts will result in a permanent suspension. Trump was required to delete the three rule-breaking tweet before he regained access to his account. He returned to Twitter on Thursday with a video acknowledging Joe Biden’s victory in the 2020 Presidential election.
After close review of recent Tweets from the @realDonaldTrump account and the context around them we have permanently suspended the account due to the risk of further incitement of violence.https://t.co/CBpE1I6j8Y
— Twitter Safety (@TwitterSafety) January 8, 2021
In the context of horrific events this week, we made it clear on Wednesday that additional violations of the Twitter Rules would potentially result in this very course of action. https://t.co/NrANZJcAfo
— Twitter Safety (@TwitterSafety) January 8, 2021
Hollywood celebs like Mark Ruffalo, Chrissy Teigen, Jameela Jamil, Sacha Baron Cohen, Kevin Mchale, Mark Hamill, Patton Oswalt, Kevin Sorbo, Stephen King, Michael Rapaport, took to Twitter to rejoice over the ban. Check out their tweets below:
AAAAAAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHHAHAAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHA https://t.co/IboPtOuWcP
— chrissy teigen (@chrissyteigen) January 8, 2021
Thank you @Twitter & the board. #BanTrumpSaveDemocracy #RemoveTrumpNow @btaylor @omidkordestani @rosenblattdavid @authorzoellick @Marthalanefox @pichette @jessecohn4 @egon_durban @drfeifei @NOIweala @EV @biz @Jack https://t.co/0XxQ0M0yLN
— Mark Ruffalo (@MarkRuffalo) January 8, 2021
Twitter finally banned Trump!
We did it! https://t.co/KFJUB1YvZU
— Sacha Baron Cohen (@SachaBaronCohen) January 8, 2021
This isn't about censorship or free speech. It's about protecting lives. Trump's words have now directly lead to 5 deaths & an attack on the US Capitol. Twitter/tech companies should always ban anyone who incites & encourages violence - especially when they have a big platform.
— Kevin McHale (@druidDUDE) January 9, 2021
GODDAMIT Trump just added me on Friendster.
— Patton Oswalt (@pattonoswalt) January 9, 2021
Twitter finally got fed up with Trump's lying bullshit and took away his megaphone. Good. Makes me proud to be a twitterhead.
— Stephen King (@StephenKing) January 9, 2021
However, Trump did not take things lying down and used the POTUS handle to state that the microblogging site has banned free speech. Trump alleged that Twitter employees coordinated with Democrats and Left to suspend his account. He called the people who voted for him ‘patriots’ and said that 'Twitter may be a private company, but without the government's gift of Section 230 they would not exist for long.'
He also said that he had envisioned such a move in the future and that his team has been negotiating with various other sites, he will make a ‘big announcement soon’. Trump declared, "We will not be SILENCED! Twitter is not about FREE SPEECH. They are all about promoting a Radical Left platform where some of the most vicious people in the world are allowed to speak freely...". However, within minutes of his tweet, Twitter removed it from the profile.
(Source: Twitter)
