Former President Donald Trump made a triumphant return to the social media scene, using X, formerly known as Twitter, as his platform of choice on Thursday. His post featured a mug shot taken earlier in the day at Fulton County Jail in Georgia, alongside a passionate appeal for donations. This marks Trump’s direct reconnection with the public on the very platform that had banned him following the January 6, 2021, attack on Congress, orchestrated by some of his supporters.
The unexpected twist in this social media saga came on November 19 when the San Francisco-based app, now under the ownership of billionaire Elon Musk, who touts himself as a “free speech absolutist,” decided to reinstate Trump. This move followed Musk’s acquisition of Twitter on October 2.
With more than 88 million followers before his suspension, Trump’s Thursday post featured his mug shot emblazoned with the words, “ELECTION INTERFERENCE! NEVER SURRENDER!” Astonishingly, this post gathered over 14 million views within just 50 minutes of going live.
Twitter had permanently suspended Trump’s account in January 2021, citing concerns about further incitement of violence following the U.S. Capitol’s storming. During his time on the platform, Trump used it extensively to propagate the narrative that the 2020 election was tainted by widespread voter fraud and to disseminate various conspiracy theories.
On November 15, Trump formally launched his bid to reclaim the White House in 2024. However, on Wednesday, he bypassed a Republican primary debate on Fox News, opting for an interview on X instead. This conversation with conservative commentator Tucker Carlson garnered an impressive 250 million views by Thursday night, according to the platform’s statistics.
But on Thursday evening, Trump surprised many by breaking his commitment to exclusively use his new platform, Truth Social. Truth Social, developed by his Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG) startup, had already amassed 6.4 million followers for the former president. Trump had been actively using Truth Social since May as his primary means of communication with his followers. He employed the platform to endorse his allies, criticize his adversaries, and protect his image in the face of ongoing legal investigations at the state, congressional, and federal levels.
A year ago, TMTG announced plans to go public through a merger with Digital World Acquisition Corp (DWAC), a special-purpose acquisition company (SPAC). This deal, worth $1.3 billion in cash infusion for TMTG, now hangs in the balance due to investigations by the Department of Justice and SEC, causing delays in the merger’s completion.
A critical deadline looms, as DWAC shareholders have until 10 a.m. on September 5 to vote on extending the merger timeline. Failure to secure the votes will result in the SPAC’s liquidation on September 8.
Trump had filed a lawsuit against Twitter in 2021, asserting that his suspension violated his freedom of speech under the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. While a U.S. judge in California dismissed the case, a federal appeals court in Pasadena, California, is set to revisit the dispute on October 4. Trump’s legal team maintains that his claims remain valid and can be adjudicated by the appeals court, despite his reinstatement to the platform.
