WASHINGTON, D.C., USA — Editor's note: The video attached to this story was published April 25, 2022.
Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, told The Huffington Post that she feels former President Donald Trump should get his account back, even after Trump himself said he does not want to rejoin Twitter.
Collins' comment comes after it was announced Monday that Tesla CEO Elon Musk purchased the social media platform.
Trump was barred from major social media platforms after the deadly Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection, with Twitter citing the “risk of further incitement of violence." The decision denied him the platform he had used to generate media attention and speak directly to his followers, which had been integral to his political rise. At the time, the former president had roughly 89 million followers on Twitter alone.
“Although I obviously don’t agree with a lot of President Trump’s tweets, I do think he should have his account back," Collins told The Huffington Post on Tuesday. "To me, it’s ironic that we allow Russian government sites to be on Twitter, but we don’t allow President Trump."
Annie Clark, a spokesperson for Collins, confirmed to NEWS CENTER Maine that Collins made the comments to Huffington Post reporter Igor Bobic after Bobic asked her a question as she was coming off the Senate floor Tuesday.
Trump said Monday he has no intention of rejoining Twitter, even if his account is reinstated following Musk’s agreement to buy the social media giant for roughly $44 billion.
Trump told Fox News he will instead focus on his own platform, Truth Social, which has been mired in problems since its launch earlier this year.
“I am not going on Twitter. I am going to stay on Truth,” Trump was quoted telling the network. “I hope Elon buys Twitter, because he’ll make improvements to it and he is a good man. But I am going to be staying on Truth.”
Truth Social trended to the No. 1 spot on the top free apps chart on the Apple App Store on Tuesday, but backstage there were financial worries as the Musk-Twitter deal loomed. According to CNN, the shares of Digital World Acquisition Corporation, a company that plans to merge with Trump Media & Technology Group, fell 13 percent Monday.
Musk, a self-described free-speech absolutist and the world's wealthiest person, had said he wanted to buy and privatize Twitter because he believed it wasn’t living up to its potential as a free speech platform. It raised questions about whether he might reinstate Trump’s account as the former president lays the groundwork for another White House run in 2024.