Twitter Suspends, Then Reinstates Elise Stefanik’s Comms Director Ahead of GOP Leadership Vote
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Twitter briefly suspended Rep. Elise Stefanik’s (R-NY) communications director on Wednesday evening, before reinstating the account on Thursday morning.
“BIG TECH on the MOVE!” Stefanik wrote on Twitter early Thursday. “Twitter just suspended my Communications Director. An unconstitutional overreach SILENCING our voices and freedom of speech. Republicans are united in fighting back against Big Tech’s tyranny. Millions of Americans will not be silenced!”
The account, which belongs to Karoline Leavitt, was restored shortly after Stefanik’s message. A Twitter spokesperson told media the account had been suspended “in error,” adding that Leavitt’s followers would “take 24-48 hours to fully restore.”
BREAKING: It appears I’ve been released from Twitter’s Conservative Jail ‼️
This was not an “error,” as Twitter claimed. This was another purge in their ongoing effort to silence conservatives voices!
We cannot back down to Big Tech Giants! Our movement is too important! https://t.co/RfY4HjwOut
— Karoline Leavitt (@kc_leavitt) May 6, 2021
Leavitt expressed skepticism of that claim in a message written after her return to the platform. “BREAKING: It appears I’ve been released from Twitter’s Conservative Jail,” Leavitt wrote. “This was not an ‘error,’ as Twitter claimed. This was another purge in their ongoing effort to silence conservatives voices! We cannot back down to Big Tech Giants! Our movement is too important!”
Stefanik is running to replace Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY) as the third-ranking member among House Republicans. Leavitt’s messages prior to the suspension including a retweet of Stefanik thanking former President Donald Trump for endorsing her campaign, in addition to a message sharing a link to Trump’s endorsement on his own website.
The development came the same day Twitter banned an account created by Trump’s team to promote his new “From the Desk” website, where he has been posting short messages. That came hours after Facebook — in a separate development — said Trump would not be allowed to return to that platform, either, making his January suspension permanent.
