Democrats laud Twitter for ban on political ads
Trump’s campaign calls the move a muzzle
WASHINGTON — Democratic presidential candidates largely praised Twitter’s decision Wednesday to ban political advertising, while President Donald Trump’s reelection campaign decried the move as attempting to muzzle conservatives.
“We believe political message reach should be earned, not bought,” announced Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey. That followed Facebook taking fire since reaffirming that it will not fact-check ads by politicians or their campaigns — which could allow them to lie freely. That company’s CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, told Congress last week that politicians have the right to free speech on Facebook.
The issue came to the forefront in September when Twitter, along with Facebook and Google, refused to remove a misleading video ad from Trump’s campaign that targeted former Vice President Joe Biden, who along with Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren leads the 2020 Democratic Party field. In response, Warren ran an ad on Facebook claiming that Zuckerberg endorsed Trump for reelection, acknowledging the deliberate falsehood as necessary to make a point.
“We appreciate that Twitter recognizes that they should not permit disproven smears, like those from the Trump campaign, to appear in advertisements on their platform,” Biden campaign spokesman Bill Russo said in a statement. “It would be unfortunate to suggest that the only option available to social media companies to do so is the full withdrawal of political advertising, but when faced with a choice between ad dollars and the integrity of our democracy, it is encouraging that, for once, revenue did not win out.”
Montana Gov. Steve Bullock suggested Facebook should follow Twitter’s lead, tweeting simply: “Good. Your turn, Facebook.”
Pete Buttigieg, mayor of South Bend, Indiana, called Twitter’s move “a bold step” that reflects a “sense of responsibility.” Buttigieg, speaking to reporters in Peterborough, New Hampshire, added, “I think other online platforms would do well to either accept their responsibility for truth or question whether they should be in the business at all.”
Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar, also a Democratic presidential candidate, said it was unacceptable for different social media platforms to have different rules on political advertising.
“Under their current policies, Facebook is allowing blatant lies in political ads and now Twitter isn’t allowing political ads at all … ,” she said in a statement.