Twitter on Tuesday, 23 June, hid a tweet by US President Donald Trump stating that the tweet violated Twitter rules about abusive behaviour. In his tweet, the US president threatened to use “serious force” against protesters in Washington DC.
The tweet read, “There will never be an “Autonomous Zone” in Washington, D.C., as long as I’m your President. If they try they will be met with serious force!”
The tweet refers to the police-free district created by protesters in Seattle, in Washington state, two weeks ago. This has sparked outrage among conservatives.
The tweet now carries an advisory that reads, “This Tweet violated the Twitter Rules about abusive behavior. However, Twitter has determined that it may be in the public’s interest for the Tweet to remain accessible.”
According to reports, this is not the first time that Twitter had to take action against tweets by Donald Trump. In May, Twitter reportedly labelled two Trump tweets that made false claims about mail-in ballots in California. Another Tweet by Trump a few days later that read, "when the looting starts, the shooting starts," was labelled a glorification of violence.
News agency AFP reported that the US President has already signed an executive order which could weaken the law that protects internet companies to regulate social media platforms more aggressively.
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