Former US President Barack Obama’s lawyers have petitioned the corporation to allow access having followed a ban from the platform in the aftermath of the 2021 Capitol attack.
Donald Trump has reportedly asked Meta to restore his Facebook access as he prepares to ramp up his presidential campaign in 2024.
The former president was blacklisted from Facebook more than two years ago after his supporters threatened the US Capitol in an ineffective attempt to prevent Joe Biden’s victory in the 2020 presidential election from being certified.
Trump advisers argued in a letter to Meta obtained by NBC News on Wednesday that the ban “significantly altered and hindered public discourse” and should be repealed.
“A decision will be announced in the coming weeks,” Meta said.
Trump used his Twitter account to rally supporters near the Capitol. He prompted loyalists to “fight like hell” in a speech before the attack. He after which took to Twitter to blast his vice president, Mike Pence, for failing to halt certification whereas the strike was underway.
A congressional committee recommended that Trump be criminally prosecuted in the aftermath of the attack, which claimed the lives of hundreds of his loyalists.
After Elon Musk purchased Twitter last year, the platform raised its ban on Trump. Trump, on the other hand, has not tweeted since, preferring to continue to stay on his own rival social media service, Truth Social.
According to NBC, an unidentified Republican said Trump had been bragging about returning to Twitter and predicted the former would make the move.
Trump’s Facebook and Twitter accounts have 34 million and nearly 88 million followers, in both. He has fewer than 5 million followers on Truth Social.
Trump used Twitter and Facebook extensively during his presidential campaign in 2016 all through his presidential term.
Trump announced his 2024 presidential campaign in mid-November, after being impeached but acquitted of the Capitol attack. In doing so, he attempted to take credit for Republicans regaining control of the US House in the midterm elections, despite the fact that their large percentage was so much smaller than anticipated and many applicants Trump supported were defeated.
