Twitter sues U.S. over demand for records on anti-Trump account

[Rollo]

Source: Reuters

Twitter Inc said in a lawsuit on Thursday that it had received a demand from U.S. officials for records that could reveal the user behind an account opposed to President Donald Trump and that it was challenging the demand in court.

The lawsuit over the anonymous account was filed in federal court in San Francisco, where Twitter is based.

Read more: http://uk.reuters.com/article/twitter-lawsuit-idUKL2N1HE1JY

[get the red out]

1. Great!

So will the proponents of small government now throw resources at getting the identities of anyone on twitter who doesn't like Trump?

[wordpix]

17. of course but we have to #resist

whatever way we can

[bucolic_frolic]

2. What's wrong with Twitter?

Doesn't it know only Republicans can remain anonymous, spend hundreds of millions
on campaign ads anonymously, change the rules midstream, and answer to no judge
who rules against them?

What's wrong with Twitter?

Idiots. Get on the program. Call Mitch, he'll help you out.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

3. What part of US.gov is demanding the records & on what basis? Or is it just a tRumped-up vendetta?

[wordpix]

20. 25 pg complaint but skimming thru, "unmask" was used in this way:

ppl in gov or formerly in gov want and NEED to communicate about controversial issues of importance, and they have the right to free speech. In this case, they NEED to hide identities and Twitter refuses to unmask them.

[wordpix]

22. here's the link to the complaint -lots of good stuff

https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/3538047-Twitter-Complaint.html

[Glimmer of Hope]

28. The attorneys for Twitter and Kushner are from the same law firm. Ha!

Great talent there.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

30. Thanks. In summary, tRump gvmt embarrassed by tweets, applies in ham-fisted way to stop free speech

It is the Department of Homeland Security.

A probable US government employee using an Alt_USCIS account moniker is embarrassing the tRumpanzees and they desperately want to shut her/him down. That would be a violation of free speech.

They are such amateurs, even the "special agent", that they demanded the identity be revealed by a deadline the day before they faxed the demand.

As amateurs, they claimed a section of law about commercial goods applied even though no commercial or non-commercial goods were involved.

They said that the person behind the moniker had a right to respond to the demand but then they claimed that Twitter was forbidden from contacting and informing the person.

Executive summary: The government officials are behaving like fascists in an attempt to shut down free speech they don't like.

[Rollo]

32. Live by the tweet, die by the tweet...

[Leghorn21]

4. So I guess these "U.S. officials" would also like twitter user info on Malcolm Nance, Jester

Actual, Scott Dworkin, Louise Mensch, Tea Pain, Adam Khan and John Schindler accounts?

And Reps. Ted Lieu and Maxine Waters and Adam Schiff and Eric Swalwell as well?

Well, good luck with all that, "U.S. officials"

[wordpix]

23. yes it will get to that and worse if we don't stop this criminal cabal

[Leghorn21]

29. I know we're all bracing ourselves - UNNH - (for what good it may do!) - some days I can indeed

keep the faith better than others, eh - (today, not so much, but - we'll regroup. Got dammit)

[safeinOhio]

5. Trade the info

for 20 years of his complete tax records. He loves to wheel and deal.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

31. No way. Not unless the person behind the moniker agrees with no duress. Not anyone else's choice. nt

[OKNancy]

6. better info here:

http://www.theverge.com/2017/4/6/15211092/twitter-trump-lawsuit-customs-alt-government

According to Twitter’s suit, filed today in Northern California District Court, US Customs and Border Protection has attempted to use a “limited-purpose investigatory tool” to unmask the owner of the Twitter account “@ALT_USCIS.” The account, one of several “alt” government accounts that appeared in the wake of Trump’s ascent to the presidency, was used “to express public criticism of the Department and the current Administration,” according to Twitter’s complaint.

rest at link

[mahatmakanejeeves]

10. They're on the #AltGovt Megathread.

It's the Streisand Effect at work.

#AltGovt Megathread: Unofficial Government Agency Twitter Accounts, Updated April 4, 2017

ALT Immigration: @ALT_USCIS

#resistance, Official inside resistance ALT Immigration . Team 2.0 Not the views of DHS or USCIS. old team follow died

line 45

Link to tweet

Another source:

Twitter sues over feds’ request to unmask owner of @ALT_USCIS account

By Josh Gerstein | 04/06/17 04:43 PM EDT

Twitter is suing the federal government over what the company says is an unconstitutional effort to expose the identity of the creator one of many anti-Trump "alt" federal agency accounts that popped up soon after President Donald Trump was sworn in.

The short-message social-media site sued the Department of Homeland Security Thursday in U.S. District Court in San Francisco, seeking to void a summons a Customs and Border Protection agent sent to the company demanding that it turn over records identifying those behind the "@ALT_USCIS" account—a Twitter handle apparently used by one or more employees of the U.S Citizenship and Immigration Services.

"Defendants may not compel Twitter to disclose information regarding the real identities of these users without first demonstrating that some criminal or civil offense has been committed, that unmasking the users’ identity is the least restrictive means for investigating that offense, that the demand for this information is not motivated by a desire to suppress free speech, and that the interests of pursuing that investigation outweigh the important First Amendment rights of Twitter and its users," Twitter's attorneys wrote.

CBP warned Twitter not to notify the owner of the account, but the company did so after CBP said it did not intend to obtain a court order blocking such disclosure. The social-media company complains that the summons it received was issued under a federal law that pertains to investigations of illegal importation of merchandise.
....

Authors:

Josh Gerstein |  [email protected] |  @joshgerstein

[mountain grammy]

12. Chilling.

[wordpix]

24. yet one can get a chuckle from item #45

Incompetent WH demands records by the day before the summons was faxed

[riversedge]

38. Thanks. Also looks like an interesting web site that I have not seen before.

[NCjack]

7. Nunes: Need work? Investigate this! (Looks like the Russian

Affairs Section, White House behind this.)

[Achilleaze]

8. KGOP wants to PURGE everyone who will not Assume the Position

The KGOP demands that all submit to their russian-fueled KristoFascist Koo De Tat. They are just warming up here.

[Leghorn21]

9. 10-4, Ach - I'm having apocalyptic visions of a mass "round up" here, with ban/kush cat fights

providing cover to the reality of what might be coming down here..hope to fuck I'm wrong, as do we all

[Honeycombe8]

11. I fear you are right. nt

They want names. Make no mistake, once Trump gets a name, he'll go after the person to destroy his life.

[lark]

18. Scary, since he has my husbands' twitter address.

He tweets shit at Drumpf all the time, dogging him for various and sundry reasons as there's a lot to hate. He recently got a tweet back from Drumpf - So Swingline, the liberal fool, doesn't like Donald T Trump and says bad things about me. I'll be president for the next 8 years, so the joke's on him, Loser.

Glad my husband doesn't include any personal information on his twitter profile!! The president is a very mean and vindictive asshole.

[Leghorn21]

27. Aw, maaan - lark, I'm glad your husband "tweets shit" at dft - my favorite thing is to read

his idiot pronouncements, followed quickly by the delicious comments!!

Yes, things are getting a bit too damn scary here, but I bet dumbfuck didn't even send that tweet to your husband himself, and there are just too too TOO many people rising up against this regime (who have probably also gotten tweets from the LOSINGEST "pres." EVER)...all this to say, please stay calm, lark, even if this phony sob-in-chief is indeed a life-long vindictive asshole - fug 'em -

Peace!

[SunSeeker]

13. Fucking fascist Trump administration. This subpoena is SO unconstitutional.

[cyberswede]

14. ...and the number of followers of @ALT_uscis has gone op by over 2000 in the last half hour.

[Leghorn21]

15. Oh look! This is apparently on CNN now, via ALT_uscis tweet:

ALT🛂 Immigration
@ALT_uscis

well now on CNN! and we gained 17000 followers in less than 30 minutes. Thank you CBP/Trump twitter.com/CNN/status/850…

2:38 PM - 6 Apr 2017

[tazkcmo]

16. I hope it's mine!

It would be like winning the lottery. Sweet.

[jpak]

19. Shut down trump's account

a truly patriotic act.

yup

[DK504]

25. Now DonnieRhea take a good look, this is McCarthyism.

Trying to find who is against the Pre*ident, it's also fucking illegal.

[wordpix]

26. lots of masked twitter users working to get truth & Trump out

sometimes I worry about myself b/c I retweet a lot of political stuff with snarky comments about the f-ing R's

[Rollo]

33. I don't tweet, but I've been known to...

...chirp my tires...

[ColemanMaskell]

34. Twitter refuses U.S. order to reveal user behind anti-Trump account

Twitter refuses U.S. order to reveal user behind anti-Trump account
Reuters
Thu Apr 6, 2017 | 7:55pm EDT
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-twitter-lawsuit-idUSKBN1782PH

By David Ingram | SAN FRANCISCO
Twitter Inc on Thursday filed a federal lawsuit to block an order by the U.S. government demanding that it reveal who is behind an account opposed to President Donald Trump's tough immigration policies.

Citing freedom of speech as a basis for not turning over records, Twitter filed the lawsuit in federal court in San Francisco and said that the account, @ALT_uscis, claimed to be run by at least one federal immigration employee. The acronym CIS refers to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, and the account describes itself as "immigration resistance."

[riversedge]

35. The ACLU is involved-representing the account holder. GOOD!!..

... The CBP summons doesn't state any reason for the demand — a key omission that is at the heart of Twitter's response.

Twitter said CBP was obligated to demonstrate that some criminal or civil offense had been committed and that outing the account holders' identities was the least restrictive way to advance the investigation.

The American Civil Liberties Union, which told NBC News that is representing the account holder, similarly argued that the government hadn't presented a strong justification for demanding the information.

"In this case the government has given no reason at all, leading to concerns that it is simply trying to stifle dissent," said Nathan Freed Wessler, a lawyer with the ACLU's Speech, Privacy and Technology Project.

In any event, Twitter's lawyers wrote, "Permitting CBP to pierce the pseudonym of the @ALT_USCIS account would have a grave chilling effect on the speech of that account in particular and on the many other 'alternative agency' accounts that have been created to voice dissent to government policies."

[riversedge]

36. KO: Support the account President Asshole @realDonaldTrump is trying to suppress. Follow @ALT_uscis

Kathryn and 3 others Retweeted
Keith Olbermann?Verified account @KeithOlbermann 10h10 hours ago

Support the account President Asshole @realDonaldTrump is trying to suppress. Follow @ALT_uscis
188 replies 2,488 retweets 4,374 likes

Link to tweet

Kathryn? @SpicyDemocrat 2h2 hours ago
Replying to @KeithOlbermann

@checkinghh @realDonaldTrump @ALT_uscis
Thank you Keith 👊✌
0 replies 0 retweets 0 likes
Sharon Ball? @Sharon412011 15m15 minutes ago
Replying to @KeithOlbermann @realDonaldTrump @ALT_uscis

Done 😂
0 replies 0 retweets 0 likes
Kelli Hanifan? @KelliHanifan 1h1 hour ago
Replying to @KeithOlbermann @realDonaldTrump @ALT_uscis

Done ✅
0 replies 0 retweets 0 likes
Estela? @MeEstela 1h1 hour ago
Replying to @KeithOlbermann @rob13567 and

Done ✅
0 replies 0 retweets 0 likes
able? @beable80 3h3 hours ago


Replying to @KeithOlbermann @realDonaldTrump @ALT_uscis

45 wanting them unmasked therefore bringing them to the media attention helped me find them, TY 45, count on one new follower for @ALT_uscis

[riversedge]

37. @ALT_USCIS has pinned the FIRST Amendment to the top of their account....

Good for them.

Link to tweet

[riversedge]

39. Confirmed. Not just hearsay. Trump is now going after individual Twitter accounts that are meanies t

Rob Reiner and RiskyLiberal liked
J?SŦ?R ✪ ?CŦUAL³³º¹? @th3j35t3r 12h12 hours ago
Replying to @th3j35t3r

^^^ Confirmed. Not just hearsay. Trump is now going after individual Twitter accounts that are meanies to him. Twitter is suing to prevent.

Link to tweet

Some replies:

J?SŦ?R ✪ ?CŦUAL³³º¹? @th3j35t3r 12h12 hours ago
Replying to @th3j35t3r

^^ To be clear. Trump takes to Twitter to ram his crap at the people. People laugh at him, demands 'unmasking' of an individual for revenge.
101 replies 1,123 retweets 2,025 likes
J?SŦ?R ✪ ?CŦUAL³³º¹? @th3j35t3r 12h12 hours ago

^^^ Full 25 page legal complaint from Twitter ref Trumps admin demanding personal details of anti-trump account >>
90 replies 1,174 retweets 1,252 likes
Resa? @Resa_Two 11h11 hours ago

THAT MOMENT,when you realize that the @POTUS just demanded the #UNMASKING of a US Person, because #twitter presents a danger but not #Russia
63 replies 2,176 retweets 3,438 likes
Ellie Lena? @sewimperfect 11h11 hours ago

It's delicious he hates being made fun of on @Twitter I tell my teens 2 ignore their insults, if you react u r showing it has power over u!
6 replies 113 retweets 255 likes
Resa? @Resa_Two 11h11 hours ago

retweet
the hell out of this...make it go VIRAL!!!
2 replies 56 retweets 129 likes