Everybody the world over knows: Twitter is Trump’s life force. He uses it to speak directly to his base, peddling a variety of baseless accusations, statistics, and claims. When he feels threatened, he lashes out through tweets, fighting “fire with fire,” as Principal Deputy White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders explained when responding to questions about Trump’s vile attack on Mika Brzezinski this week.
Trump also believes he’s above the law. How else to explain his absurd recklessness intimidating witnesses, interfering in federal investigations, and dishing out blackmail threats. He may yet be in for a rude awakening as Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia probe heats up.
He could, in fact, also feel the wrath of Twitter should the company’s leadership actually enforce the terms of use agreement that all account holders agree to. Writer and legal expert Seth Abramson recently made the case for banning Trump’s Twitter account, arguing that if everyday citizens used their accounts for achieve such nefarious ends, they would be suspended without a moment’s notice.
His argument is compelling. Considering the damage that Trump commits every time he circulates falsehoods (not to mention the personal damage he causes when he ruthlessly attacks people), Twitter could do the entire country a favor and axe Trump’s beloved @realDonaldTrump handle.
Mika Brzezinski and *many* others have been targeted for *harassment*—not mere political critique—by Trump. His Twitter should be suspended. pic.twitter.com/WjXxdwyyh3
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) June 30, 2017
(2) CNN has noted Trump uses Twitter as a "weapon," and Trump himself has observed he can make things difficult for his critics via Twitter.
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) June 30, 2017
(2) CNN has noted Trump uses Twitter as a "weapon," and Trump himself has observed he can make things difficult for his critics via Twitter.
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) June 30, 2017
(3) The problem is this: Twitter doesn't allow its platform to be used as a "weapon." So Trump's use of his Twitter is a very real problem.
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) June 30, 2017
(4) The First Amendment allows anyone say anything jerky they want to anyone else—but Twitter, a private entity, doesn't have to support it.
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) June 30, 2017
(5) So the problem isn't that I or anyone can't handle Trump's taunts, it's that I resent that he can freely violate Twitter's terms of use.
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) June 30, 2017
(6) If you or I wanted to use our Twitter feed as a "weapon" to harass our critics we'd face possible expulsion from Twitter. Trump doesn't.
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) June 30, 2017
(7) I'm just saying Twitter should look at this and report its findings. It's not just the tweets, it's his confessions about their purpose.
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) June 30, 2017
(8) And some of his tweets are clearly crimes; his tweet about Jim Comey prior to his testimony violated 18 U.S.C. 1512 (Witness Tampering).
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) June 30, 2017
(9) Don't be confused: I used to be a public defender, so I've heard and brushed off worse stuff in my life than anything Trump's ever said.
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) June 30, 2017
(10) My objection—as an attorney—is to Trump committing crimes on his Twitter feed and confessing to violating Twitter's terms of service.
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) June 30, 2017