Fox News personality Pete Hegseth said he will stand his ground and refuse to abide by a request from Twitter to delete a tweet that caused his account to be suspended.
The co-host of the “Fox & Friends” morning show doubled down Thursday after Twitter suspended his privileges on the social networking service for violating its policies.
Mr. Hegseth, a former Army National Guard officer, said his Twitter account was suspended this week after he posted part of a manifesto attributed to Mohammed Saeed Alshamrani, a Saudi aviation student accused of recently killing three people at a military base in Pensacola, Florida.
“If Twitter can ban me for this, they can ban anyone for anything. I fought terrorists on the battlefield, and now I’m fighting for free speech (and against political correctness) to expose radical Islamist views. People deserve to know. I will not delete the tweet, and plan to fight this,” Mr. Hegseth said in a statement, The Washington Examiner first reported.
“Never back down from the Leftist tech mob—that’s what they want,” he added on Instagram.
A spokesperson for Twitter told The Washington Times that Mr. Hegseth’s tweet is in violation of the platform’s policies and that he can resume posting from his account once he deletes it.
Twitter policy prohibits users from distributing media or propaganda that can further a terrorist organization or violent extremist group’s stated goals, according to the company.
Alshamrani, 21, has been identified by authorities as the sole shooter responsible for gunning down three people at Naval Air Station Pensacola on Dec. 6. The rampage is being treated by the FBI as a presumed terrorist attack.
• Andrew Blake can be reached at ablake@washingtontimes.com.
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