- Meta has announced plans to lift the restrictions imposed on Donald Trump’s account effective January 6th.
- Trump was banned from Meta’s Facebook and Instagram, as well as X and YouTube, but has since been reinstated.
- Trump’s old social media accounts are no longer restricted, but he continues to use Truth Social.
Donald Trump’s social media accounts have reverted to how they were before the attack on the Capitol.
Meta announced plans on Friday to lift the enhanced suspension from the former president’s account. The restrictions, which include tougher penalties for rule violations and automatic re-suspension of accounts, were put in place when Meta first reinstated his account in January 2023 after a two-year suspension.
The social media giant initially banned Trump from his Facebook and Instagram accounts “following his praise of those who committed the violent act at the Capitol on January 6th.”
“Party conventions will soon be held, including the Republican Convention next week, where candidates for president of the United States will be formally nominated,” Mehta said in a press release about the decision. “In assessing the responsibility for permitting political expression, we believe the American people should be able to hear from presidential candidates with the same standards.”
The statement said the penalty was considered a “response to extreme and extraordinary circumstances” and was ultimately unnecessary because Trump did not continue to violate the platform’s terms after returning to the platform.
The lifting of restrictions on Trump’s account came just days after Trump threatened Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg with prison time if he was re-elected, intensifying a long-running public feud between the two.
When reached for comment by Business Insider, a Meta spokesperson declined to answer specific questions about the timing or rationale behind the decision, or whether other restrictions remain in place on the former president’s social media accounts.
President Joe Biden’s reelection campaign issued a scathing response to meth, calling the company’s “greedy and reckless decision” and warning of “undemocratic and un-American misinformation” by Trump and MAGA Republicans.
“Restoring his access would be like giving car keys to someone you know will drive their car into a crowd and drive it off a cliff,” campaign spokesman Charles Luttwak said in a statement to Business Insider. “It’s like giving a bullhorn to a true racist who will shout hatred and white supremacy from the rooftops and make it mainstream. This is, without question, a direct attack on our safety and our democracy.”
Meta appears to be the last major social media platform to reverse its Jan. 6 restrictions on Trump’s accounts. Trump was initially banned from Meta’s platform, X (formerly Twitter) and Google-owned YouTube in the days after the Capitol attack.
After Elon Musk bought Twitter, Trump’s accounts were reinstated in November 2022. Meta reinstated Trump’s Facebook and Instagram accounts in January 2023 with restrictions that have now been lifted, and YouTube also returned Trump’s channels in March of that year.
While Trump’s old social media accounts are now unrestricted and boast tens of millions of followers, he still sticks primarily to his own company, Truth Social.
After being removed from the mainstream site, President Trump founded an alternative social networking site and has used it as his primary platform since its launch in February 2022.
Truth Social went public in March and initially boosted Trump’s net worth by billions of dollars, but the company has faced financial difficulties and a volatile stock price after SEC disclosures revealed huge losses.
Representatives for the Trump campaign did not immediately respond to Business Insider’s request for comment.
