Nikki Haley on Trump’s Twitter Ban: “This is What Happens in China”

Former UN Ambassador Nikki Haley has been unequivocal in condemning what happened at the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, and she has been plainly outspoken about what she views as President Trump’s role in inspiring the chaos. But with her feelings known on the matter, she nonetheless spoke out against Twitter on Friday when the tech giant announced that they were permanently banning the president from their platform.

“Silencing people, not to mention the President of the US, is what happens in China not our country,” Haley wrote. “#Unbelievable.”

Earlier in the week, at a Republican National Committee dinner in Florida, Haley criticized the president for his words leading up to the Capitol riot.

“President Trump has not always chosen the right words. He was wrong with his words in Charlottesville, and I told him so at the time,” Haley said. “He was badly wrong with his words yesterday. And it wasn’t just his words. His actions since Election Day will be judged harshly by history.”

Twitter announced Friday that President Trump’s last two tweets had violated the site’s terms of service, leaving them with no other option than to permanently ban his account:

On January 8, 2021, President Donald J. Trump Tweeted:

“The 75,000,000 great American Patriots who voted for me, AMERICA FIRST, and MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN, will have a GIANT VOICE long into the future. They will not be disrespected or treated unfairly in any way, shape or form!!!”

Shortly thereafter, the President Tweeted:

“To all of those who have asked, I will not be going to the Inauguration on January 20th.”

Due to the ongoing tensions in the United States, and an uptick in the global conversation in regards to the people who violently stormed the Capitol on January 6, 2021, these two Tweets must be read in the context of broader events in the country and the ways in which the President’s statements can be mobilized by different audiences, including to incite violence, as well as in the context of the pattern of behavior from this account in recent weeks. After assessing the language in these Tweets against our Glorification of Violence policy, we have determined that these Tweets are in violation of the Glorification of Violence Policy and the user @realDonaldTrump should be immediately permanently suspended from the service.

It’s extremely difficult for us to figure out what was ban-worthy about these tweets, in context or out of context. Trump is not talking to or about the people who stormed the Capitol. He’s talking to half of America! And that second tweet? He’s not attending the inauguration? How is THAT a violation of Twitter’s TOS? Let’s face it, Jack Dorsey has been looking for any excuse to crack down on the leader of the conservative movement in this country and take away his biggest microphone.

Cracking down on the free exchange of ideas is just about the worst way to respond to what happened last week.