An investigation into Donald Trump's online followers is the "most unbelievable, incredible abuse" of free speech in U.S. history, Republican Senator Josh Hawley has said.
The former president was indicted on four counts in Washington, D.C., for allegedly working to overturn the results of the 2020 election in the run-up to the January 6, 2021, riot at the Capitol. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges that include conspiracy to defraud the U.S. government and conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding. His trial is due to begin in March 2024.
Speaking on Fox News' The Ingraham Angle on Wednesday, Hawley said that the Justice Department's attempted harvesting of Trump supporters' social media accounts was "like something from Communist China".
The Department of Justice recently released a redacted subpoena that sought information on Trump's Twitter account, amid Special Counsel Jack Smith's investigation of attempts to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.
The redacted warrant sparked outrage as it requested "lists of Twitter users who have favorited or retweeted tweets posted" by Trump, "as well as all tweets that include the username associated with the account (i.e. 'mentions' or 'replies')." After Trump left Twitter, it rebranded as X.
The Justice Department warrant requested an array of other data from Trump's Twitter account, such as personal information, devices used to log into the account, direct-message content sent by the account and information on whom the account followed, unfollowed, blocked and muted.
It also sought "all other content, records, and other information relating to all other interactions between the SUBJECT ACCOUNT and other Twitter users from October 2020 to January 2021."
Newsweek sought email comment from Donald Trump's attorney and the Department of Justice on Thursday.
Hawley, a Missouri senator who sits on the Senate Judiciary Committee, said that he had the honor of marching with pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong. He later saw how the Chinese government cracked down on the protesters by installing surveillance cameras and following them on social media.
He said the "absolutely outrageous" attempt to obtain information on anyone who even liked a Trump tweet was "doing the exact same thing" as the Chinese government and he accused Smith of "doing the bidding" of President Joe Biden.
Smith is currently investigating Trump, accusing the former president of attempting to overturn the results of the 2020 election and over his actions related to the subsequent January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, waged by his supporters. While the redacted warrant requested information relating to accounts that followed and liked Trump's posts on the social media platform, he has not explicitly said that he plans to investigate anyone else regarding the 2020 election.
However, the release of the warrant sparked an array of responses on X, with many users criticizing Smith and supporting Trump.
"Smith demanded Twitter provide data on 'all lists of Twitter users who have favorited or retweeted tweets posted by [Trump], as well as all tweets that include the username associated with the account (i.e., 'mentions' or 'replies').' Jack Smith also demanded Trump's drafted tweets as well as his DMs," Collin Rugg, co-founder of Trending Politics, wrote on X. "Enemy of the people."
X user @ericmmatheny wrote, "Dear Jack Smith: My name is Eric Matheny and my Twitter handle is @ericmmatheny. I've shared and liked countless numbers of Trump's posts, and I have followed him for years. Still do. Hope I've made your job easier."
X user @GuntherEagleman said, "Dear Jack Smith, FBI, DOJ, I support President Trump, go ahead and put me on your f****** list ... Don't care. Signed A Real American."
Tom Fitton, president of watchdog Judicial Watch, also spoke about the warrant, saying that it "lends further urgency to Congress DEFUNDING NOW this rogue operation. Call your members of Congress now to share your views."
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
fairness meter
To Rate This Article
About the writer
Sean O'Driscoll is a Newsweek Senior Crime and Courts Reporter based in Ireland. His focus is reporting on U.S. law. ... Read more
