President Trump has been suspended from Twitter for “repeated violations” of the company’s civic integrity policy.
The president’s account will remain locked for 12 hours after he deletes three tweets the company said were violations. If Trump does not delete the tweets, his account will remain locked indefinitely. Twitter has also threatened to ban the president from the platform permanently if he violates the rules again.
The enforcement action comes after Twitter initially limited engagement with a video of the president calling for protesters who had stormed the Capitol to “go home,” preventing it from being retweeted, liked, or replied to. The president later posted a claim that he had won the election in a “landslide.”
“These are the things and events that happen when a sacred landslide election victory is so unceremoniously & viciously stripped away from great patriots who have been badly & unfairly treated for so long,” the president wrote, adding, “Go home with love & in peace. Remember this day forever!”
At the time of publication, Twitter had not responded to the Washington Examiner’s request for comment.
This means that the account of @realDonaldTrump will be locked for 12 hours following the removal of these Tweets. If the Tweets are not removed, the account will remain locked.
— Twitter Safety (@TwitterSafety) January 7, 2021
Earlier, Facebook and YouTube removed the video of Trump urging rioters who stormed the Capitol to “go home.”
Guy Rosen, the vice president of integrity at Facebook, said the company declared an “emergency situation” and removed the president’s statement because executives determined “it contributes to rather than diminishes the risk of ongoing violence.” The social networking website and its subsidiary, Instagram, suspended the president from both platforms late Wednesday. The president will not be able to post during the 24-hour suspension.
We are locking President Trump’s Instagram account for 24 hours as well. https://t.co/HpA79eSbMe
— Adam Mosseri ? (@mosseri) January 7, 2021
A spokesman for YouTube, which is owned by search giant Google, confirmed to the Washington Examiner that the video violated “policies regarding content that alleges widespread fraud or errors changed the outcome” of the presidential election.
“We are working proactively to protect the health of the public conversation occurring on the service and will take action on any content that violates the Twitter Rules,” Twitter’s safety division wrote.
In the video, the president repeated his claim that the election was “stolen.” It was released after a mob stormed the Capitol during a joint session of Congress. Senators and representatives were debating the Electoral College votes when the House was put into a lockdown.
“I know your pain. I know your hurt. We had an election that was stolen from us,” Trump said. “It was a landslide election, and everyone knows it —especially the other side. But you have to go home now. We have to have peace.”
While continuing to say the election was “fraudulent,” @realDonaldTrump tells his supporters to “go home.”
“We have to have peace. We have to have law and order. We have to respect our great people in law and order.” pic.twitter.com/hLRQzwd1H0
— Washington Examiner (@dcexaminer) January 6, 2021
Vice President Mike Pence, who was overseeing the Senate debate in his role as president of the Senate, also released a statement calling for the rioters to go home and warning that those involved will be prosecuted.
“The violence and destruction taking place at the US Capitol Must Stop and it Must Stop Now. Anyone involved must respect Law Enforcement officers and immediately leave the building,” the vice president wrote. “Peaceful protest is the right of every American, but this attack on our Capitol will not be tolerated, and those involved will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”
