(AmericanProsperity.com) – Over the past few years, social media platforms have notched conservatives in their crosshairs, suspending them for even the most minor of transgressions. On Twitter, however, that mostly stopped when Elon Musk purchased the company in October 2022. That’s not to say the practice of suspending accounts has ended, as one Montana senator recently found out.
On Monday, February 6, Senator Steve Daines (R-MT) changed his profile photo on his Twitter account. Shortly after, he received a notice that the account had been shut down due to violating the platform’s policy. The picture simply showed him and his wife with an antelope they had hunted, but it was flagged on the grounds that it allegedly depicted “graphic violence.”
The outcry was swift. Conservatives, including Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks (IA) and Senator Mike Rounds (SD), rallied around him, posting their own hunting photos. The hashtag #FreeSteveDaines trended for a short time. Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) posted a picture of Daines in a prison lineup holding the “offensive” photo.
#FreeSteveDaines pic.twitter.com/ckEuAJ7txg
— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) February 7, 2023
Eventually, the news reached Musk, who wasted no time reaching out to the senator and setting things right. Daines expressed his gratitude to him for recognizing the error in suspending his account when he was simply posting the “Montana way of life.”
My full statement on my Twitter suspension and reinstatement here: pic.twitter.com/TvgyMd8yeX
— Steve Daines (@SteveDaines) February 7, 2023
Musk also acknowledged the mistake in a tweet of his own, saying the policy “is being fixed.” The change is reportedly going to make it clear that only images “clearly showing blood without clicking on the profile pic” are subject to the rule.
This is being fixed. Policy against showing blood in profile pic is being amended to “clearly showing blood without clicking on the profile pic”.
The intent is to avoid people being forced to see gruesome profile pics.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 7, 2023
The Tesla CEO has made it a point to address politics, rather than avoid them, like many other social media executives do. He’s consistently made it known that suppression has no place on Twitter and conservatives, including former President Donald Trump, are welcome and encouraged on the platform.
~Here’s to Your Prosperity!
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