Trump wastes no time attacking Facebook after being unbanned from Meta

Former President Donald Trump continued to criticize social networking giant Meta even after the company vowed to reinstate its accounts on its Facebook and Instagram platforms.

Meta said it will end Trump’s two-year suspension “in the coming weeks” in a press release on Wednesday. The former president originally lost his account privileges in January 2021, a day after his supporters attacked the US Capitol.

When asked for comment, Trump’s press team directed news week on the former president’s Truth Social post on Wednesday night, in which he addressed the reinstatement of his accounts and repeated claims he made this month that Meta had “lost billions of dollars in value since he lost your favorite president, me, ‘deplatformed'”.

“This should never happen again to an incumbent president or anyone else who doesn’t deserve retribution!” Trump wrote in response to Meta’s announcement. “THANK YOU TRUTH SOCIAL FOR DOING SUCH AN INCREDIBLE JOB. YOUR GROWTH IS EXCELLENT AND THE FUTURE IS UNLIMITED!!!”

After the January 6 turmoil, the ex-president was also permanently banned from his Twitter account for fear he might use the platform to incite further violence. Meta explained in its press release Wednesday that Trump’s suspension of Facebook and Instagram was for similar reasons, but that after assessing “the current environment according to our Crisis Policy Protocol,” the company determined that Trump’s risk to public safety had “reduced sufficiently.”

Twitter boss Elon Musk reactivated Trump’s account in the fall. The former president is yet to use the platform after the ban is lifted.

Trump has remained consistent on his own social media site, Truth Social, which he launched in February. According to an April report by forbes, The platform has at least 2 million active users, including many prominent conservatives who argue platforms like Twitter are too restrictive.

In an interview with Fox News last week, Trump said he was trying to set up a meeting with Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg to persuade the company to let him back on its social platforms. Trump’s campaign team had also reportedly written a letter to Zuckerberg asking that Trump be reinstated on Facebook in light of his 2024 presidential campaign.

“We believe that the ban on President Trump’s Facebook account has dramatically distorted and inhibited public discourse,” Trump campaign general counsel Scott Gast wrote in the letter.

It’s unclear if Trump plans to use the meta accounts after recovery.