Twitter Warns It Will Suspend Users Who Wish For Trump’s Death From Coronavirus

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Twitter says that tweets wishing for President Trump’s death in the wake of his coronavirus diagnosis violate its policies and could result in suspension.

Trump was flown to the Walter Reed military hospital in Bethesda, Maryland on Friday evening “out of an abundance of caution” according to the White House.

He had been experiencing fatigue, according to his doctor, who has not confirmed reports that he was also suffering from a fever.

NYP reports: The social media platform told Motherboard it could dole out the suspensions under an “abusive behavior” rule that’s been in place since April.

“Content that wishes, hopes or expresses a desire for death, serious bodily harm or fatal disease against an individual is against our rules,” Twitter said in a statement to the outlet.

The anti-abuse policy explicitly bans tweets “hoping that someone dies as a result of a serious disease e.g., “I hope you get cancer and die.”

It’s not clear how often the rule will be enforced, as many have taken to Twitter to send ill wishes to the president since his and first lady Melania’s positive tests were announced early Friday morning.

Twitter told Motherboard it “won’t take enforcement action on every Tweet.”

“We’re prioritizing the removal of content when it has a clear call to action that could potentially cause real-world harm,” Twitter added.

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