After years of using Twitter as a legislation tool, sounding board and occasional diary, President Donald Trump was permanently banned from the platform on Friday.
Less than two weeks before the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden, the social media company removed the commander in chief after rioters overtook the Capitol on Wednesday, leading to the deaths of at least five people.
In a blog post about the permanent suspension, Twitter said they did so “due to the risk of further incitement of violence.”
“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. Our public interest framework exists to enable the public to hear from elected officials and world leaders directly. It is built on a principle that the people have a right to hold power to account in the open,” the company wrote.
“However, we made it clear going back years that these accounts are not above our rules entirely and cannot use Twitter to incite violence, among other things. We will continue to be transparent around our policies and their enforcement.”
