Over the past month or so, former President Donald Trump has been away from social media as major platforms have permanently suspended him due to his remarks during and a little after the Capitol riots. While the suspensions may seem permanent, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates says the former president should probably be allowed to return to the platforms.
Speaking on CNBC’s “Squawk Box,” Gates was pressed on the decision by Facebook’s oversight board to permanently or indefinitely suspend Trump. The former president was permanently suspended by both Twitter and Facebook for repeatedly spreading election misinformation as well as the baseless fraud claims due to his loss to Joe Biden. The platforms have also cited that Trump’s posting may further pose a risk to inciting more violence following the riots. To this day, Trump may have made fewer statements, but he has recently repeated his claims of fraud during an on-air phone call to Fox News after the death of Rush Limbaugh.
“I think at some point he probably will be allowed back on and probably should be allowed back on,” said Gates. “It’s weird when you’re, you know, saying that the election was stolen without any facts there, and how corrosive that is. But I’ll bet they’ll find a way to let him back on.”
Gates suggested flagging Trump’s misleading posts as an alternative to permanently suspending him from the platform. Twitter’s CFO has previously said that Trump will remain suspended from the platform even if he decides to run for office again.
Trump was acquitted by the Senate during the previous weekend on a 57-43 vote. Democrats and seven Republican Senators voted to convict but failed to reach the 67-vote threshold needed which led to his acquittal. But despite getting acquitted by the Senate, Trump still faces criminal investigations and legal probes. Trump faces investigations from three states, a few of which are related to the Capitol riots and to the elections.
The former president has two defamation lawsuits against him by E. Jean Carroll and Summer Zervos. Trump’s niece Mary Trump has also filed a fraud lawsuit against him, and three investigations by attorney generals from New York, Georgia, and Washington DC.