Amid the mob attack of pro-Trump protesters at the US Capitol on Wednesday afternoon, Social Media giants includingTwitter has suspended Donald Trump’s account in an unprecedented move to address misinformation and the incitement of violence posted by the president.
Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube took down a video in which President Trump addressed his supporters. The sites said the video, in which Trump seemingly sympathized with protesters and repeated false claims about the election, contributed to ongoing violence and violated misinformation policies. Twitter then went a step further and locked the president’s account.
In the now-removed video, President Trump told his supporters: “I know your pain. I know you are hurt. We had an election that was stolen from us” — he continues to make these claims even after his own attorney general confirmed there was no evidence of such fraud and courts threw out all lawsuits.
Guy Rosen, who oversees Facebook’s work on safety and integrity, tweeted that the social media site took down the president’s video as part of “an emergency situation.”
In a series of tweets by Twitter safety, they stated: “As a result of the unprecedented and ongoing violent situation in Washington, DC, we have required the removal of three @realDonaldTrump tweets that were posted earlier today for repeated and severe violations of our Civic Integrity policy,
“This means that the account of [Trump] will be locked for 12 hours following the removal of these Tweets. If the Tweets are not removed, the account will remain locked.” If Trump again violates the policies, the account will be permanently suspended from Twitter.”
All three living President of the United States of America has issued statements condemning President Trump for fueling Wednesday’s attack on the US Capitol.
Former President Bill Clinton in a statement said: “more than four years of poison politics spreading deliberate misinformation, sowing distrust in our system, and pitting Americans against one another.”
President George W. Bush condemned the actions of Pro-Trump rioters: “This is how election results are disputed in a banana republic – not our democratic republic.
“I am appalled by the reckless behavior of some political leaders since the election and by the lack of respect shown today for our institutions.”
The action is the most aggressive yet from the company and comes after it joined Facebook and YouTube in removing a video post from the account of Donald Trump in which the president praised the protestors.