Politics

Facebook continues Trump’s ban, will review down the road

Published

2 years ago

May 5, 2021

Facebook’s Oversight Board upheld former President Trump’s suspension, announcing on Wednesday to continue his ban that began in January.

After over 100 days since the Capitol riots that led to former President Trump’s suspension, Facebook will be reviewing its decision to indefinitely ban Trump from its platform. This comes after the social media’s Oversight Board slammed leadership for their disproportionate response, saying it was an “indeterminate and standardless penalty.”

In the meantime, Trump launched a site where he can communicate with his followers in tweet-sized statements.

At first, the board upheld Trump’s suspension. However, they criticized its duration. The board asked that leadership, including Vice President Nick Clegg, review Trump’s suspension.

The Board also found Facebook violated its own rules by imposing a suspension that was ‘indefinite.’ This penalty is not described in Facebook’s content policies. It has no clear criteria and gives Facebook total discretion on when to impose or lift it.
— Oversight Board (@OversightBoard) May 5, 2021

As a result, Clegg says they will change the nature of the ban. “We will now consider the board’s decision and determine an action that is clear and proportionate,” Clegg said in a press release. The board gave Facebook six-month-deadline to come to a decision.

Facebook cannot make up the rules as it goes, and anyone concerned about its power should be concerned about allowing this. Having clear rules that apply to all users and Facebook is essential for ensuring the company treats users fairly. This is what the Board stands for.
— Oversight Board (@OversightBoard) May 5, 2021

According to a press release, the Oversight Board was created in 2020. Board members are allegedly “made up of experts and civic leaders from around the world with a wide range of backgrounds and perspectives.” No one at Facebook can overrule board decisions, not even Mark Zuckerberg.

You can follow Jenny Goldsberry on Twitter @jennyjournalism

Related Topics:capitol riots Facebook Instagram president trump

Immigration

20 states suing Biden administration over migrant parole program

Published

1 day ago

January 25, 2023

Sara Carter Staff

President Joe Biden has expanded a humanitarian parole program leading to a significant increase of migrants entering the United States illegally each month. As a result, 20 states have geared up to sue the Biden administration.

Tuesday, 20 Republican states and conservative legal group America First Legal, announced their plans to sue the White House over the legality of the administration’s parole program. The program “allows up to 30,000 migrants from Haiti, Nicaragua, Cuba, and Venezuela into the homeland each month” reports Foreign Desk News.

Reports shoot the lawsuit was filed by Texas, the America First Legal and the other states in the Southern District of Texas in hopes to block the parole program.

Foreign Desk News reports of the history:

In October, the administration announced the program for Venezuelans, allowing a limited number to fly directly into the U.S. as long as they had not entered illegally, had a sponsor already, and passed certain checks. In early January, President Biden announced that the program would expand to include Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Cubans, allowing up to 30,000 a month into the U.S.

The program also allows migrants to receive work permits and a two-year authorization to live in the U.S. and was announced alongside an expansion of Title 42 expulsions to include those nationalities.

In the lawsuit, the plaintiffs argue that the program is unlawful given the “exceptionally limited” parole power the federal government has, adding that they have up to 360,000 migrants that could be allowed into the homeland a year.

The suit’s focus is on the limits placed on parole by Congress, saying that the authority is to be used on a “case-by-case basis for urgent humanitarian reasons or significant public benefit.”

“Every state in America, especially border states like Texas, is being crushed by the impacts of illegal immigration,” Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said in a statement to Fox News Digital.

“The Biden open borders agenda has created a humanitarian crisis that is increasing crime and violence in our streets, overwhelming local communities, and worsening the opioid crisis. This unlawful amnesty program, which will invite hundreds of thousands of aliens into the U.S. every year, will only make this immigration crisis drastically worse.”