First Amendment group says Trump still blocking some users on Twitter

A free speech advocacy group asked President Trump on Friday to unblock 41 Twitter users they say were blocked because they criticized the White House.

The Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University provided the Department of Justice with a list of the accounts that were “blocked from the president’s account on the basis of viewpoint,” according to a press release from the group.

The request follows a May 23 court decision that said social media posts on the president’s and other officials’ accounts were represented public comment and blocking users violated their free speech rights under the First Amendment.

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That case involved seven Twitter users, all of whom were subsequently unblocked.

“Given that ruling, the president and his aides should unblock all of the Twitter users who have been blocked from the @realDonaldTrump account on the basis of viewpoint,” the institute said.

The Trump administration has filed an appeal of the court’s decision.

White House officials have defended Trump’s infamous Twitter habits, arguing he uses his account, with more than 53 million followers, to connect to the American people.