“From the Desk of Donald J. Trump” is exactly what it sounds like — a place where journalists, supporters, and opponents can receive musings from the 45th president following his banishment from social media platforms after the Capitol riot.
Still, just one week after its launch, what many call the former president’s “new communications platform” remains a glorified blog despite promises from senior Trump adviser Jason Miller in early May that his boss’s office would soon release additional information on the new social media platform they are developing. So far, however, nothing has been announced. Facebook, for now at least, will not restore the former commander in chief’s account. He is relying on statements and a rudimentary website to communicate. He remains the most influential national Republican, but strategists wonder if he can remain a force long-term without a social media presence.
Based on his post-general-election actions and statements, Trump’s situation could make it difficult for the former president to play as large of a financial role in the 2022 midterm elections as he wants, let alone launch a serious third bid for the White House in 2024.
TRUMP BAN UPHELD BY FACEBOOK’S INDEPENDENT OVERSIGHT BOARD
Two individuals close to Trump told the Washington Examiner that he will be in trouble without either getting back on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube or finding a new, viable social media space in which users can interact directly with Trump and he can, in turn, find new donors to restock his campaign war chests.
Currently, visitors to “From the Desk,” which is nested at Trump’s website, are greeted by a public archive of the statements distributed by Trump’s Save America PAC to reporters via email.
The archive stretches all the way back to January and includes various Republican endorsements, internal polls, holiday greetings, and even a shot at “junky” Medina Spirit, the champion racehorse facing doping allegations after winning the 2021 Kentucky Derby. Visitors can “heart” (like) or share the posts on Facebook or Twitter, but there is no way to respond to nor comment on Trump’s statements, which would be possible on social media platforms.
A new analysis of social media shares of Trump’s recent statements, however, shows they are receiving just a fraction of the engagements that the former president received when he was posting on Twitter or Facebook directly (where he boasted followings of 88 million and 32 million, respectively). And that is even as he uses the same incendiary rhetoric he used in his tweets. According to the analysis, conducted on NBC’s behalf by BuzzSumo, social media engagements on items posted to “From the Desk” totaled just over 200,000 as of Tuesday.
Prior to the ban, Trump frequently tweeted dozens of times a day, with posts often receiving hundreds of thousands of retweets. The majority of his tweets were also posted directly on Facebook, where they received similar engagement.
Furthermore, the Trump campaign itself began circulating a poll to supporters on its text message distribution list, asking supporters if they wanted to hear from Trump via this new “communication platform.”
Recipients who clicked on the link were asked to answer three questions:
- “What would you like to hear from the desk of Donald J. Trump?”
- “Are you going to follow President Trump’s new communication platform — From The Desk of Donald J. Trump?”
- “Is there anything else you’d like to share with President Trump?”
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Though Trump is banned from social media, the number of political pilgrimages that Republican lawmakers, including House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, have taken to Mar-a-Lago this spring (not to mention the GOP’s Wednesday decision to oust staunch Trump critic Rep. Liz Cheney from House leadership) suggests the former president still commands a dominant presence in the party.
