Trump Says Congress Should 'Get Involved' over Twitter's 'Political Games'
President Donald Trump used his Twitter account Tuesday to rip into the social media giant, slamming Twitter’s treatment of conservatives and cheering on congressional action to regulate huge technology corporations.
“’The best thing ever to happen to Twitter is Donald Trump,’ @MariaBartiromo,” Trump wrote, quoting an analyst who appeared Tuesday morning on Fox Business Network’s “Mornings with Maria.”
“So true, but they don’t treat me well as a Republican. Very discriminatory, hard for people to sign on. Constantly taking people off list. Big complaints from many people. Different names-over 100 M…
“But should be much higher than that if Twitter wasn’t playing their political games. No wonder Congress wants to get involved – and they should. Must be more, and fairer, companies to get out the WORD!”
“The best thing ever to happen to Twitter is Donald Trump.” @MariaBartiromo So true, but they don’t treat me well as a Republican. Very discriminatory, hard for people to sign on. Constantly taking people off list. Big complaints from many people. Different names-over 100 M…..
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 23, 2019
…..But should be much higher than that if Twitter wasn’t playing their political games. No wonder Congress wants to get involved – and they should. Must be more, and fairer, companies to get out the WORD!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 23, 2019
Tuesday was not the first time Trump has said Twitter is working with other tech giants such as Facebook and Google to slant the playing field against him and conservatives.
During a March 19 media opportunity in the White House Rose Garden, Trump was asked about a lawsuit filed against Twitter by Republican California Rep. Devin Nunes, and possible efforts to regulate social media, according to a White House media pool report.
“Well, we have to do something. I tell you, I have many, many millions of followers on Twitter. And it’s different than it used to be. Things are happening, names are taken off, people aren’t getting through. You’ve heard the same complaints,” Trump said.
Trump then put his finger on the common thread linking the many complaints about Twitter.
“And it seems to be, if they’re conservative, if they’re Republicans, if they’re in a certain group, there’s discrimination and big discrimination. I see it absolutely on Twitter and Facebook, which I have also, and others I see,” he said.
Trump then returned his focus to Twitter.
“But I really focus more on the one platform. And I have many different platforms. It’s — I guess we have 60 million — almost 60 million on Twitter. And if you add them all up, it’s way over 100 million people. And I get to see firsthand what’s going on, and it’s not good,” he said.
Trump then hinted that tech companies are allied against his administration.
“And we use the word ‘collusion’ very loosely all the time. And I will tell you, there is collusion with respect to that, because something has to be going on. And when you get the back-scene, back-office statements made by executives of the various companies and you see the level of, in many cases, hatred they have for a certain group of people that happen to be in power, that happen to have won the election, you say, ‘that’s really unfair,'” he said.
“So something is happening with those groups of folks that are running Facebook and Google and Twitter. And I do think we have to get to the bottom of it,” he said, later adding, “It’s a very, very dangerous situation. So I think I agree. I think something has to be looked at very closely.”
Concerns that tech giants are censoring conservatives were aired last month in Washington, USA Today noted.
“What makes the threat of political censorship so problematic is the lack of transparency, the invisibility, the ability for a handful of giant tech companies to decide if a particular speaker is disfavored,” Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz said during the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing titled, “Stifling Free Speech: Technological Censorship and the Public Discourse.”
“It’s time for tech companies like Google and Facebook to start embracing the spirit of the First Amendment. Not just for their own employees, but for all of the Americans who use their platforms,” Republican Sen. Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee said during the hearing.
Social media platforms have denied claims by Trump and other conservatives that they use various tactics to limit the reach of conservative figures and media outlets.
Fox Business reported Tuesday thatTwitter announced its first-quarter earnings. Twitter posted a profit of $190.8 million.
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