On Tuesday, the Supreme Court was asked to suspend limits imposed by a lower court on the White House’s ability to deny requests made on the social media platform it uses to communicate with the public.
The Trump administration filed an emergency request with the court asking the justices to put on hold a federal district court ruling from late August that had barred President Donald Trump from using Twitter and other social media tools to censor critics.
The filing came after the DC Circuit Court of Appeals refused to review the lower court’s ruling — one that had been sought by the White House in its bid to shield the president in an ongoing legal battle challenging its ability to mute or block users who take issue with the president’s views.
In its filing, the administration argued that the lower court’s ruling, “threatens the Executive Branch’s ability to manage the President’s social media presence and deprives the public of direct access to his statements.” It said the justices should weigh in while the appeals court considers a petition from the Trump administration to review the lower court decision.
The Twitter case is part of a larger dispute over the scope of executive speech immunity — a legal concept that safeguards the president and other government officials from various forms of legal liabilities faced by other citizens.
The president’s critics have said that the so-called “viewpoint discrimination” practiced by the White House through muting or blocking of Twitter accounts that take issue with the administration’s policies.
Each side of the dispute has made their case at various levels of court in the past few years, with the Supreme Court staying out of the fray. For now, it remains to be seen if the justices will put the brakes on the lower court’s decision or instead allow it to proceed.
