Presidents Twitter Account Should Not Block Users, First Amendment Lawyers Argue

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President’s Twitter Account Should Not Block Users, First Amendment Lawyers Argue
by SAFIA SAMEE ALI


The president’s Twitter habits are getting him into even more legal murkiness.

A group of First Amendment lawyers sent President Donald Trump a letter on Tuesday asking him to unblock Twitter users whom he gave the digital cold shower after they chastised or disagreed with him on social media — citing that Trump’s Twitter space is a "public forum" so the ban is unconstitutional.

The Knight First Amendment Institute, a non-profit under the Knight Foundation and Columbia University, represents several Twitter users who have been blocked from accessing @realDonaldTrump after they wrote unflattering statements about the president.

The letter to Trump says his “Twitter account operates as a ‘designated public forum’ for First Amendment purposes, and accordingly the viewpoint-based blocking of our clients is unconstitutional.”

"We ask that you unblock them and any others who have been blocked for similar reasons.”

The White House did not immediately comment on the letter but the lawyers are prepared to go to court if the president does not heed their advice, said Alex Abdo, one of the lawyers representing the blocked users.

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