GOP Senator Suspended From Twitter After Posting Hunting Photo

Twitter suspended the account of Sen. Steve Daines (R-Mont.) on Tuesday after he posted a photo of him and his wife hunting. The social media platform cited a violation of its media policy.

Twitter said Daines, the chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, infringed its rules by uploading a photo to his profile that included graphic violence or adult content. The image shows the Montana senator and his wife posing with what appears to be a dead animal.

A spokesperson for the NRSC described the move as insane and called on Twitter to immediately reverse this suspension.

Several of Daines GOP colleagues also criticized the decision on Twitter, including Texas Sen. Ted Cruz:

Ridiculous. My friend @SteveDaines is in @Twitter jail for posting this pic w/ his wife Cindy.

If you dont like hunting, fine, dont go. But dont censor others who disagree.

And Im pretty sure this is a formal job responsibility for a senator from Montana!#FreeSteveDaines pic.twitter.com/t6VdYNYe5u

Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) February 7, 2023","type":"rich","meta":{"author":"Ted Cruz","author_url":"https://twitter.com/tedcruz","cache_age":86400,"description":"Ridiculous. My friend @SteveDaines is in @Twitter jail for posting this pic w/ his wife Cindy.If you dont like hunting, fine, dont go. But dont censor others who disagree. 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Ridiculous. My friend @SteveDaines is in @Twitter jail for posting this pic w/ his wife Cindy.

If you dont like hunting, fine, dont go. But dont censor others who disagree.

And Im pretty sure this is a formal job responsibility for a senator from Montana!#FreeSteveDaines pic.twitter.com/t6VdYNYe5u
Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) February 7, 2023

Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) called on new Twitter CEO Elon Musk to reverse Daines suspension.

It looks like you need to hire some new people and fire some bad employees who are trying to undermine you. I know this isnt the kind of Twitter you want, Lee wrote in a post directed at Musk.

Musk responded later by saying that Twitters media policy is being fixed .

Conservatives have celebrated Musks rocky purchase of Twitter last year, welcoming his vows to uphold free speech on the platform. Under Musks leadership, Twitter has reactivated the accounts of many far-right extremists it previously banned over language inciting violence, including former President Donald Trump .

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The suspension may not be all bad news for Daines, however. Other Republican lawmakers who have gotten into similar trouble with Twitters rules have used the opportunity to raise funds. As head of the Senate GOPs campaign arm, Daines is likely to do the same.