Kamala Harris asked Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey to suspend Donald Trump's account for making 'blatant threats' and inciting violence
- Sen. Kamala Harris, a Democratic presidential candidate from California, has repeatedly called on Twitter to suspend President Donald Trump's account this week.
- In a formal letter addressed to Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, Harris cited six of Trump's tweets surrounding impeachment that target, threaten, or incite violence - all of which violate Twitter's user agreement.
- Twitter told Business Insider that it has received the letter and plans to respond to Harris. In the past, the social media platform has stated that it may allow politicians to break its rules, if it's "in the public's interest" to have access to certain tweets.
Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris called on Twitter to suspend President Donald Trump's account multiple times this week.
Harris issued a formal letter to Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey on Tuesday, citing Twitter's policies against targeted harassment, threats, and inciting violence. The California senator included six of Trump's recent tweets surrounding his impeachment, all of which, Harris wrote, "are blatant threats" and violate Twitter's user agreement.
Twitter told Business Insider that it has received the letter and plans to respond to Harris.
But if the past is any indication, the social media platform is not likely to take action. Twitter has made clear that it will allow politicians with enough followers to post content that would otherwise violate its policies if it's "in the public's interest" to have access to certain tweets.
Although Twitter said it would begin labeling such tweets with warnings in June, these labels have not seemed to apply to Trump's tweets. Other times, Twitter has maintained that Trump's racist tweets were not in violation of the platform's policies.
In the letter, Harris specifically cited Trump's tweets that targeted the whistleblower who filed a complaint against him, as well as one tweet that targeted the person who provided the whistleblower with information, and another one suggesting that House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff should be arrested for treason.
Harris also stated that the now-infamous tweet in which the president amplified a message that his impeachment would cause something like a civil war could incite violence.
Harris has tweeted multiple times herself to make the case for suspending Trump's account. On Tuesday night, Harris quoted another Trump tweet about impeachment and tagged Dorsey directly, imploring the CEO that it's "Time to do something about this."
Twitter is used to making difficult decisions on Trump tweets that violate its policies, but with impeachment just beginning, it is likely the president will use the platform even more freely to target his opponents. It is unclear where exactly - if it all -Twitter will draw the line.