WASHINGTON--Indiana Republican Congressman Jim Banks has had his Congressional account restored by Twitter.
Two weeks after his @RepJimBanks account was locked by Twitter for violating the platform’s rules, the account was restored Friday. Banks said in a video tweet, “I’m back.”
Twitter suspended Banks over tweets about Dr. Rachel Levine becoming the first openly transgender four-star officer in the U.S. uniformed services. He tweeted: “The title of first female four-star officer gets taken by a man.”
The post was removed with a reference to Twitter rules that include a ban on “targeted misgendering” of transgender people.
Banks released the following statement Friday:
Twitter was blocking my communications with Hoosiers right before Congress votes on the largest expansion of the federal government since the Great Society. Twitter demanded I delete the tweet if I wanted to participate in a momentous political debate, which is my job, so I did, but I stand by every word in my factual statement.
Twitter provides a crucial platform for elected officials to communicate with voters, which is part of what makes Twitter’s biased and arbitrary censorship so dangerous. Fighting the left’s censorship will remain a priority of mine for as long as I’m in Congress.
I’ll say it again: House Republicans must rein in Big Tech.
