Supreme Court Declines to Hear X’s Appeal in Trump Election Case
The U.S. Supreme Court has refused to hear an appeal from social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, regarding a search warrant in the ongoing election interference case against former President Donald Trump. The justices did not explain their decision and noted no dissents.
X had argued that a nondisclosure order accompanying the warrant violated its First Amendment rights. The company contended that Trump should have been able to assert executive privilege over the requested communications. Two nonpartisan electronic privacy groups supported X’s position on First Amendment grounds.
Prosecutors, however, maintained that Trump did not use the account for official purposes, thus negating any claim to executive privilege. A lower court had previously ruled that notifying Trump about the warrant could potentially jeopardize the investigation.
The case stems from Trump’s use of Twitter to spread false claims about the 2020 election before the January 6 Capitol attack. The indictment details how Trump encouraged his followers to come to Washington on that day and pressured then-Vice President Mike Pence while mischaracterizing the actions of the Capitol mob.
This ruling allows the case to progress following an earlier Supreme Court decision granting Trump broad immunity in certain aspects of the investigation.
The search warrant was issued amid rapid changes at Twitter under new owner Elon Musk. Since acquiring the platform, Musk has laid off numerous staff members, including those focused on misinformation and hate speech. He has also reinstated previously banned users, including Trump, and has publicly endorsed the former president for the 2024 election.
As the legal proceedings continue, this latest development underscores the ongoing intersection of social media, politics, and the justice system in high-profile cases.
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