After President Trump was banned from blocking his opponents on Twitter, other lawmakers are feeling the heat.
Specifically, Democratic socialist and freshman congresswoman Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY).
Former lawmaker Dov Hikind (D) and congressional hopeful Joseph Saladino (R) announced they would be suing Ocasio-Cortez for blocking them on Twitter. They seek a court order demanding that they be unblocked.
The two lawsuits come after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit ruled that Trump can’t block his opponents on Twitter because the First Amendment does not allow public officials to exclude people from the online dialogue taking place on their social media.
I have officially filed my lawsuit against AOC for blocking me on twitter.
— Saladino for Congress (@JoeySalads) July 9, 2019
Trump is not allowed to block people, will the standards apply equally?
Stay tuned to find out! pic.twitter.com/0RmHI7x9Qc
Saladino filed the lawsuit in the Southern District of New York. Hikind's suit is in the Eastern District.
In an interview with Fox News, Hikind pointed to the Trump ruling and said the standards should be applied equally to all government officials.
"Just today the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a ruling that elected officials cannot block individuals from their Twitter accounts, thereby setting a precedent that Ocasio-Cortez must follow," Hikind told the network. "Twitter is a public space, and all should have access to the government officials on it." (The Hill)
Ocasio-Cortez has yet to respond to the pending cases.
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