Twitter slaps worthless ‘disputed’ label on Trump tweet as rioters storm Capitol

The U.S. Capitol is under siege, and Donald Trump is using his favorite social media platform to stoke the flames. 

Rioters broke into the Capitol on Wednesday afternoon, decrying the results of a presidential election Trump has repeatedly falsely claimed as fraudulent. In response, the President published a statement seemingly designed to encourage the action. 

“Mike Pence didn’t have the courage to do what should have been done to protect our Country and our Constitution, giving States a chance to certify a corrected set of facts, not the fraudulent or inaccurate ones which they were asked to previously certify,” wrote Trump. “USA demands the truth!”

That demand has come in the form of clashing with police inside the Capitol. 

In response to Trump’s statement, Twitter labeled the tweet in line with the company’s civic integrity policy.

“This claim about election fraud is disputed,” reads the label below Trump’s tweet. 

Trump tweeted some time later a very bland call to “support our Capitol Police.”

About half an hour later, he issued a slightly more straightforward statement asking the mob who’d already stormed the Capitol “to remain peaceful.”

When asked if the company is concerned that Trump’s tweet might be encouraging violence at the Capitol, a Twitter spokesperson did not immediately respond. After the publication of this article, Twitter released the following statement. 

“In regard to the ongoing situation in Washington, D.C., we are working proactively to protect the health of the public conversation occurring on the service and will take action on any content that violates the Twitter Rules,” reads the Twitter thread in part. “We are also exploring other escalated enforcement actions and will keep the public updated with any significant developments.”

UPDATE: Jan. 6, 2021, 1:18 p.m. PST: This story was updated with a tweeted statement from Twitter.