That can only be Twitter, or X – and Donald Trump is back on the platform: After an almost 3-year hiatus from Twitter (now known as X), former president Donald Trump has tweeted again, sharing with his 86.9 million followers a photo of his mug shot with a caption, “ELECTION INTERFERENCE NEVER SURRENDER!”, as well as his website where supporters can donate.
Many political science experts would argue Twitter or X helped Donald Trump win the 2016 election as it allowed him to get his message directly out to voters.
The former chief executive was booked, and his mugshot was taken in connection with his indictment in Georgia a host of charges, including racketeering and fraud, which are related to his alleged efforts to interfere in the results of the 2020 presidential elections in the state.
His account was reinstated to the platform when billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk took over the company.
However, Trump also posted the same mugshot to his social media platform, Truth Social, which is similar to Twitter.
Trump has been very active on the site since being booted out of Twitter following the aftermath of the 2020 presidential elections and has been extra prolific since announcing his bid for president next year.
“I LOVE TRUTH SOCIAL. IT IS MY HOME!”, he assured his 6.39 million Truth Social followers.
Donald Trump Interview with Tucker Carlson
While Trump’s mugshot tweet marks his first official return to the platform since 2021 when he tweeted that he would not be attending President Joe Biden’s inauguration, he had a recent “unofficial” comeback after agreeing to be interviewed by conservative host Tucker Carlson, with the interview airing on Twitter as an episode of “Tucker on X” at the same time as the Republican primary debate, hosted by Fox News.
Trump officially announced that he would skip the debate only days before the event. He urged his supporters to watch his interview on Twitter instead, pre-taped roughly a week before the GOP presidential hopefuls faced each other on the debate stage.
Speaking to Carlson in the interview, Trump explained his decision to forgo attending the debate: “You see the polls have come out, I’m leading by 50 and 60 points,” Trump said. “And some of them are at one and zero and two. And I’m saying, ‘Do I sit there for an hour or two hours, whatever it’s going to be and get harassed by people that shouldn’t even be running for president? Should I be doing that? And a network that isn’t particularly friendly, frankly.'”
According to Carlson, it was Trump’s camp that made the first move, broaching the possibility of airing an interview the same night as Fox News’ Republican primary debate.
Both ostensibly have axes to grind against the network – Trump has repeatedly bashed the network over what he feels is unfair coverage, while Carlson’s show, which raked in high ratings for the network, was abruptly cancelled following Fox New’s massive settlement with Dominion Voting Systems.
Carlson has moved on from cable news and has reportedly been working with Elon Musk to develop video features on Twitter that would allow him to expand his reach to a wider audience.
Tim Ramos has written for various publications, corporations, and organizations – covering everything from finance, politics, travel, entertainment, and sports – in Asia and the U.S. for more than 10 years.
From the Vault
Donald Trump May Have a New Problem: Melania Trump
Barack Obama Scolds Americans for Offering ‘Thoughts and Prayers’ During Maui Tragedy
Donald Trump Keeps Making ‘Chilling’ Threats That Could Land Him in Jail
