Former President Trump has filed a lawsuit against Twitter seeking access to his account.
Twitter permanently banned Trump from its platform on Jan. 9 “due to the risk of further incitement of violence” after he tweeted about the attacks on the US Capitol. The company said those tweets ran afoul of its Glorification of Violence policy.
Facebook issued Trump a two-year suspension from its platform on June 4; it plans to reassess the situation in 2023. Even if Trump is allowed back on the social network, however, additional violations of its policies could result in further actions.
Trump announced on July 7 that he planned to file lawsuits against Twitter and Facebook seeking restored access to the services. Now he’s made good on that claim by suing Twitter in the Southern District of Florida on the night of Oct. 1.
The Verge published a copy of the lawsuit, which alleges that Twitter’s decision to ban Trump violates his First Amendment rights as well as a new Florida law that prohibits social media companies from kicking politicians off their platforms.
“Coerced by members of the United States Congress, operating under an unconstitutional immunity granted by a permissive federal statute, and acting directly with federal officials,” the suit claims, “Defendant is censoring Plaintiff, a former President of the United States.”
The suit also complained about Twitter’s influence on public discourse, alleged that it doesn’t consistently enforce its policies, and said the company “extended its prior restraint to innumerable Users who post comments about Plaintiff.” (Read: banned Trump supporters.)
Twitter didn’t immediately respond to our request for comment.
