Multiple Republican members of Congress took to Twitter on Tuesday to defend Montana GOP Sen. Steve Daines after the social media giant locked him out of his account for allegedly displaying “graphic violence” with a profile photo that showcased his recent hunt with his wife.
The decision from Twitter drew outrage from Republicans in both the Senate and the House, with some in Congress — including South Dakota GOP Sen. Mike Rounds, Montana GOP Rep. Matt Rosendale, and North Dakota GOP Rep. Kelly Armstrong — sharing their own hunting photos on the platform.
Standing in solidarity with Daines, Sen. Rounds changed his Twitter profile picture to a photo of himself standing alongside his family from a previous hunt he took part in.
SEN. DAINES RESPONDS AFTER TWITTER SUSPENDS HIS ACCOUNT FOR HUNTING PHOTO: ‘MY WIFE IS A GREAT SHOT’
“Hey @elonmusk – Why is Twitter putting @SteveDaines in Twitter jail,” Rounds questioned in a tweet directed at Twitter CEO Elon Musk. “For his wife being a good shot? I guess since I’ve updated my profile picture, I better turn myself in.”
Twitter CEO Elon Musk addressed the situation on Tuesday, promising that the issue would be addressed.
“This is being fixed. Policy against showing blood in profile pic is being amended to ‘clearly showing blood without clicking on the profile pic’. The intent is to avoid people being forced to see gruesome profile pics,” Musk wrote in a Twitter post.
“I hear @Twitter has a problem with hunting photos. They clearly haven’t been to Montana,” Rosendale, who represents the state’s 2nd Congressional District, wrote in a tweet.
Similarly, Armstrong voiced support for Daines, sharing a photo of himself and others who took part in a “once-in-a-lifetime” moose hunt in North Dakota.
“Once-in-a-lifetime North Dakota moose tag,” Armstrong, who represents North Dakota’s at-large congressional district, wrote. “It was a fantastic hunt with great friends. Freezer is full.”
TWITTER LOCKS SEN. STEVE DAINES’ ACCOUNT FOR ‘GRAPHIC VIOLENCE’ OVER HUNTING PHOTO
Defending the photo shared to Twitter, Daines told Fox News Digital on Tuesday, “My wife is a great shot. What can I say?”
Rachel Dumke, the press secretary for Daines, also defended the photo in a statement to Fox, noting that the senator’s team will work with Twitter to “get this resolved.”
“The Senator thinks it’s preposterous that a picture of him and his wife hunting — an activity that is engrained in the Montana way of life — would be against Twitter rules. Our team has reached out to Twitter, and we’ll be working to get this resolved.”
Others members of Congress who were outraged over the decision by Twitter to suspend Daines’ account took to the social media platform to share their frustration over the decision and concluded that Daines should not be censored because people disagree with the post.
Sharing the photo that resulted in the suspension of Daines’ account, GOP Rep. Ryan Zinke, who represents Montana’s 1st Congressional District, wrote: “This is the family photo that got @SteveDaines put in twitter jail. Stop censoring our Montana way of life! Great shot, Cindy!”
“For all those in San Francisco and elsewhere… HUNTING IS CONSERVATION,” Zinke wrote in a separate tweet.
“Ridiculous. My friend @SteveDaines is in @Twitter jail for posting this pic w/ his wife Cindy. If you don’t like hunting, fine, don’t go. But don’t censor others who disagree. And I’m pretty sure this is a formal job responsibility for a senator from Montana!” Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas., wrote in a post using the #FreeSteveDaines tag.
Georgia GOP Rep. Buddy Carter also took issue with the suspension of the account belonging to Daines.
“Hunting animals isn’t violence, it’s how people have fed their families for millions of years,” said Carter, who represents the Peach State’s 1st Congressional District. “If Twitter thinks this image needs censoring, just wait until it hears where chicken nuggets come from…”
Twitter’s sensitive media policy states that certain images may be subject to removal, including pictures or video “that depicts excessively graphic or gruesome content related to death,” including “animal torture or killing.” The guidelines also state that exceptions to the policy may include “religious sacrifice, food preparation or processing, and hunting.”
Twitter has not responded to a Fox News Digital inquiry regarding the suspension of Daines’ account.
Fox News’ Taylor Penley and Aubrie Spady contributed to this article.
Multiple Republican members of Congress took to Twitter on Tuesday to defend Montana GOP Sen. Steve Daines after the social media giant locked him out of his account for allegedly displaying “graphic violence” with a profile photo that showcased his recent hunt with his wife.
The decision from Twitter drew outrage from Republicans in both the Senate and the House, with some in Congress — including South Dakota GOP Sen. Mike Rounds, Montana GOP Rep. Matt Rosendale, and North Dakota GOP Rep. Kelly Armstrong — sharing their own hunting photos on the platform.
Standing in solidarity with Daines, Sen. Rounds changed his Twitter profile picture to a photo of himself standing alongside his family from a previous hunt he took part in.
SEN. DAINES RESPONDS AFTER TWITTER SUSPENDS HIS ACCOUNT FOR HUNTING PHOTO: ‘MY WIFE IS A GREAT SHOT’
“Hey @elonmusk – Why is Twitter putting @SteveDaines in Twitter jail,” Rounds questioned in a tweet directed at Twitter CEO Elon Musk. “For his wife being a good shot? I guess since I’ve updated my profile picture, I better turn myself in.”
Twitter CEO Elon Musk addressed the situation on Tuesday, promising that the issue would be addressed.
“This is being fixed. Policy against showing blood in profile pic is being amended to ‘clearly showing blood without clicking on the profile pic’. The intent is to avoid people being forced to see gruesome profile pics,” Musk wrote in a Twitter post.
“I hear @Twitter has a problem with hunting photos. They clearly haven’t been to Montana,” Rosendale, who represents the state’s 2nd Congressional District, wrote in a tweet.
Similarly, Armstrong voiced support for Daines, sharing a photo of himself and others who took part in a “once-in-a-lifetime” moose hunt in North Dakota.
“Once-in-a-lifetime North Dakota moose tag,” Armstrong, who represents North Dakota’s at-large congressional district, wrote. “It was a fantastic hunt with great friends. Freezer is full.”
TWITTER LOCKS SEN. STEVE DAINES’ ACCOUNT FOR ‘GRAPHIC VIOLENCE’ OVER HUNTING PHOTO
Defending the photo shared to Twitter, Daines told Fox News Digital on Tuesday, “My wife is a great shot. What can I say?”
Rachel Dumke, the press secretary for Daines, also defended the photo in a statement to Fox, noting that the senator’s team will work with Twitter to “get this resolved.”
“The Senator thinks it’s preposterous that a picture of him and his wife hunting — an activity that is engrained in the Montana way of life — would be against Twitter rules. Our team has reached out to Twitter, and we’ll be working to get this resolved.”
Others members of Congress who were outraged over the decision by Twitter to suspend Daines’ account took to the social media platform to share their frustration over the decision and concluded that Daines should not be censored because people disagree with the post.
Sharing the photo that resulted in the suspension of Daines’ account, GOP Rep. Ryan Zinke, who represents Montana’s 1st Congressional District, wrote: “This is the family photo that got @SteveDaines put in twitter jail. Stop censoring our Montana way of life! Great shot, Cindy!”
“For all those in San Francisco and elsewhere… HUNTING IS CONSERVATION,” Zinke wrote in a separate tweet.
“Ridiculous. My friend @SteveDaines is in @Twitter jail for posting this pic w/ his wife Cindy. If you don’t like hunting, fine, don’t go. But don’t censor others who disagree. And I’m pretty sure this is a formal job responsibility for a senator from Montana!” Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas., wrote in a post using the #FreeSteveDaines tag.
Georgia GOP Rep. Buddy Carter also took issue with the suspension of the account belonging to Daines.
“Hunting animals isn’t violence, it’s how people have fed their families for millions of years,” said Carter, who represents the Peach State’s 1st Congressional District. “If Twitter thinks this image needs censoring, just wait until it hears where chicken nuggets come from…”
Twitter’s sensitive media policy states that certain images may be subject to removal, including pictures or video “that depicts excessively graphic or gruesome content related to death,” including “animal torture or killing.” The guidelines also state that exceptions to the policy may include “religious sacrifice, food preparation or processing, and hunting.”
Twitter has not responded to a Fox News Digital inquiry regarding the suspension of Daines’ account.
Fox News’ Taylor Penley and Aubrie Spady contributed to this article.