Twitter unblocks Powell’s site under public pressure

After veteran U.S. attorney and former prosecutor Sidney Powell filed suit on November 25 against voter fraud in Georgia and Michigan, her website, Defending the Republic, was targeted on Twitter. The blocking of Powell’s site was reported after Twitter quietly unblocked the site on Friday (Nov. 27), allowing users to post or tweet links to the site. After the news of the block was reported, Twitter quietly unblocked Powell’s site on Friday (Nov. 27), allowing users to post or include links to the site in their tweets.

After veteran U.S. attorney and former prosecutor Sidney Powell filed fraud lawsuits against the states of Georgia and Michigan on November 25, her website, Defending the Republic, was blocked by Twitter, with a “This page is not secure” screen if users clicked on the site.

After the news of the block was reported, Twitter quietly unblocked Powell’s site on Friday (November 27), allowing users to post or include a link to the site in their tweets.

On Thursday (Nov. 26), Twitter users found that if they tried to share the link to Powell’s website, defendingtherepublic.org, or send that URL in a message, they received a blocking alert from Twitter: “Something went wrong, but don’t fret, let’s try again. “

Twitter also included another warning message at the bottom of the user page saying, “We are unable to complete this request because the link has been determined to be ‘potentially harmful’ by Twitter or one of our partners. Please visit our Help Center for more information.”

If a user clicks on Powell’s URL on Twitter, the site displays the message “WARNING: This link may be unsafe,” which reads, “The link you are attempting to access has been determined by Twitter or our partners to be potentially spammy or to contain unsafe content. “

None of the warnings detailed why Powell’s lawyers’ websites were “potentially harmful” or who the alleged “partners” were.

The San Francisco, California-based social media company has not responded to a request for comment. The company has not said publicly why it blocked the links, and why it is now unblocking them.

The website “Defend the Republic” posted links to Powell’s lawsuits in Michigan and Georgia, where she alleges significant election fraud. The website states that “Defend the Republic” was founded by Sidney Powell to defend and protect the integrity of U.S. elections, and offers ways to make donations and appeal for community support for their mission and the well-being of the American Republic.

In recent weeks, Facebook and Twitter have faced intense criticism from Republicans in Congress, which is considering an amendment to Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act that would change the way technology companies are generally immune from liability lawsuits. The lawmakers say the tech giants are reviewing or limiting their influence on topics that could damage Democrat Biden.

Several secretaries of state, the Department of Homeland Security’s cybersecurity division and Dominion Voting Systems have all recently denied Powell’s allegations.