Trump Sued for Blocking People on Twitter

First Amendment advocates say it's unconstitutional
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Jul 11, 2017 5:08 PM CDT
Trump Sued for Blocking People on Twitter
President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong at the G20 Summit, Saturday, July 8, 2017, in Hamburg, Germany.   (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

First Amendment advocates are suing President Donald Trump, saying some of his critics have been unconstitutionally blocked from following him on Twitter, the AP reports.The lawsuit was filed Tuesday in Manhattan federal court by the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University. The lawsuit says Twitter has become an important public forum for the president and he frequently makes public announcements on his @realdonaldtrump account. The lawsuit asked a judge to stop Trump and his media team from blocking critics from following his personal account.

The lawsuit says blocking people from following Trump's account was a viewpoint-based restriction that the Constitution doesn't permit. The director of the Knight First Amendment Institute is Jameel Jaffer, who worked for years with the American Civil Liberties Union. A spokeswoman for government lawyers declined to comment. (More President Trump stories.)

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