Twitter sues Texas AG, claiming retaliation for Trump ban
Source: AP
DALLAS (AP) Twitter has filed a lawsuit against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, claiming the Republican used his office to retaliate against it for banning the account of former President Donald Trump following the riot at the U.S. Capitol.
Days after the deadly January insurrection, Paxton announced an investigation into Twitter and four other major technology companies for what he called the seemingly coordinated de-platforming of the President. The attorney general's office demanded that the companies produce a variety of records related to their content moderation policies and troves of internal communications.
Twitter responded Monday with a federal lawsuit alleging Paxton is seeking to punish it for taking Trump's account offline a decision the social media company says is protected free speech. It asks a judge to declare the decision to be under the gambit of the First Amendment and to, in essence, halt Paxton's investigation.
Paxton made clear that he will use the full weight of his office, including his expansive investigatory powers, to retaliate against Twitter for having made editorial decisions with which he disagrees, lawyers for the company wrote in the suit filed in a Northern California court.
Read more: https://www.usnews.com/news/politics/articles/2021-03-08/twitter-sues-texas-ag-claiming-retaliation-for-trump-ban
soothsayer
(38,601 posts)Comfortably_Numb
(3,811 posts)soothsayer
(38,601 posts)AKwannabe
(5,674 posts)OR
In response to the fucking failed take over of the Capitol of the US and the idiots responses on Twitter.
Hope Twitter prevails.
Cha
(297,503 posts)yellowdogintexas
(22,270 posts)Karma!
Serves the jerk right
SunSeeker
(51,646 posts)Hope Twitter takes Paxton's depo and makes it public.
Dan
(3,579 posts)SunSeeker
(51,646 posts)The Texas AG is investigating Twitter, which does not have the save legal standing rules as those for bringing a lawsuit.
KS Toronado
(17,295 posts)and not from taxes paid by citizens of Texas
Justice matters.
(6,939 posts)Ohio Dem
(4,357 posts)A private company can dictate its own rules regarding speech, because they aren't the government. Banning Trump is well within their rights. The government, on the other hand, can't, with some exceptions.
It's perfectly fine for MLB to strip a racist like Marge Schott of her team, and for the Clippers in the NBA to do likewise with that asshole whose name escapes me. They aren't the government. I always tell people all worried about their "right to free speech" that the rule of thumb is, simply, if they weren't arrested, then the First Amendment doesn't apply.
Ask the Dixie Chicks.
Roy Rolling
(6,928 posts)State AGs think they own the court system. Pushback from entities like Dominican Voting Systems is changing that dynamic $1.3 billion at a time.
intheflow
(28,494 posts)That paved the way for Twitter to be able to claim first amendment violation. Because corporations are people!
I still hate Citizen United, but I'm loving how it's coming back to bite Repukes in the ass!
dalton99a
(81,566 posts)Maxheader
(4,373 posts)It's over. Spend your energy helping your voters pay their utilities.
Scum bag...
apnu
(8,758 posts)By the GOP's own rhetoric: a private company is free to decide it won't serve patrons.
Republicans won't let a day go by without displaying their hypocrisy.