Well...
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news...085dcea9e5c137#block-5fa52a0f8f085dcea9e5c137
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news...085dcea9e5c137#block-5fa52a0f8f085dcea9e5c137
Trump could lose more than just the presidency this January. Twitter has confirmed that, if he leaves office in January, as now seems increasingly likely, he will no longer receive special treatment as “newsworthy individual”.
Twitter’s policy around newsworthiness protects certain people – such as elected officials with more than 250,000 followers – from having their accounts suspended or banned for rule infractions which would otherwise lead to severe penalties.
That policy is what has led to the company muting, but not removing, 12 tweets and counting from the president over the past week, as he continues to break the social network’s rules about casting doubt on the democratic process.
But, Twitter has confirmed, the policy does not apply to former elected officials. They have to follow the same rules as everyone else, and if a tweet breaks those rules, it gets removed – with the account potentially following for regular offenders.
That will present Trump with a choice, if he is indeed removed from office in late January: either tone down the rhetoric, just as the humiliation bites hardest, or face the prospect of his hugely influential following being taken away from him.