Trump's Twitter is personal — except when he tweets, DOJ argues

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published 26 March 2019

President Trump's personal Twitter is only personal sometimes.

That's what the Department of Justice claimed Tuesday in an ongoing lawsuit, fighting back against Twitter users who argue being blocked from @realDonaldTrump violates their constitutional rights. A DOJ attorney conceded that yes, Trump's tweets are official, but said when he "blocks individuals from his personal Twitter account," he "is doing so in his personal capacity," CNN reports.

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A subsequent DOJ appeal brought the case back to court on Tuesday, where Judge Barrington Parker seemed to make his opinion on the matter pretty clear. Parker listed off a slew of announcements made on @realDonaldTrump that seemed pretty official, including a new Federal Reserve board member and revocation of North Korean sanctions, The Washington Post notes. "Are you seriously urging us to believe the president isn't acting in his official capacity when he’s tweeting?" Parker asked, going on to question why a public DOJ defender was representing Trump in a so-called private matter.

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Kathryn is a graduate of Syracuse University, with degrees in magazine journalism and information technology, along with hours to earn another degree after working at SU's independent paper The Daily Orange. She's currently recovering from a horse addiction while living in New York City, and likes to share her extremely dry sense of humor on Twitter.

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