Donald Trump returns to Twitter/X after two years with mugshot

Former United States president, Donald Trump, has returned to social media after a lengthy hiatus of more than two years. The former president broke his silence on X with a tweet early on Friday morning,

This is his first tweet since January 8, 2021, after he was banned from the microblogging platform. According to a report, the tweet was made just after Donald Trump turned himself in at the Fulton County jailhouse. He was arrested in conjunction with 13 felony counts stemming from his alleged meddling in Georgia’s 2020 election.

The tweet seems to have been sent shortly after his mugshot was made public. This has garnered considerable attention and ignited heated debate across multiple social media platforms as the public’s attention has been drawn to the tweet in the context of ongoing legal and political wrangling.

Donald Trump tweets for the first time in two years

In the tweet, the former president directed his message to his massive following of more than 86 million users on X, urging them to visit his WinRed fundraising page which contained “A Personal Note from President Donald J. Trump.”

The message displayed a mix of defiance and determination as Trump addressed the situation, stating,

“Today, at the notoriously violent jail in Fulton County, Georgia, I was ARRESTED despite having committed NO CRIME.”

The tweet itself is a picture of his mugshot with the words “ELECTION INTERFERENCE, NEVER SURRENDER!” underneath. However, the combination of provocative language and imagery quickly captured the internet’s attention, spawning a wave of memes and reactions.

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Elon Musk however retweeted the tweet with the comment “Next-Level.” If we recall, Elon Musk overturned the ban on many people after he took over the affairs of Twitter (now X) in October last year. At the time of writing, the tweet has gotten over 180.7K reposts, 59.5K quotes, 668.7K likes, 21.1k bookmarks, and over 50 million impressions.

Social media platforms becoming a political hotbed

Trump’s tweet following his arrest was a blend of defiance and a political rallying cry. The tweet was not confined to the X platform alone. Trump’s message, along with his mugshot, was replicated on “Truth Social,” a platform he launched in 2022 after being banned from Twitter for alleged incitement of violence.

This expansion showcases the broader trend of political figures leveraging multiple platforms to ensure their message reaches diverse audiences and to maintain a presence despite platform bans.

Also, the influence of tech moguls like Elon Musk in shaping the relationship between politics and social media cannot be ignored. In a world where every tweet can spark debates and every post can rally movements, social media platforms are rewriting the script of political engagement.