May 5 (UPI) — Former President Donald Trump launched a new website Tuesday to host his public statements as Facebook weighs whether to lift his ban from its platforms.
The site “From the desk of Donald J. Trump” features statements Trump has made dating back to March of this year.
Trump has directly released public statements since he was banned from most major social media platforms in the wake of the Jan. 6 riots at the Capitol.
A video featuring audio clips criticizing Trump and his supporters for the riots and noting his social media bans describes the site as “a place to speak freely and safely.”
Trump spokesman Jason Miller wrote on Twitter that the website is “a great resource” to find Trump’s latest statements and “highlights from his first term in office” but was not the new social media platform Miller had teased in March.
The site does not provide any way for users to respond to or otherwise interact with Trump’s posts. It does include the option to share his statements to Twitter and Facebook as well as sign up for updates and contribute to Trump’s “Save America Joint Fundraising Committee.”
At 9 a.m. on Wednesday, Facebook’s Oversight Board is set to announce whether it will lift its bans barring Trump from both Facebook and Instagram.
Facebook announced in January that the Oversight Board would review Trump’s bans, adding that any decisions made by the independent body are “binding” and can’t be overruled by Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg or others at the company.
Trump was indefinitely banned from the platforms a day after the Capitol insurrection as Zuckerberg said the riots “clearly demonstrate that President Donald Trump intends to use his remaining time in office to undermine the peaceful and lawful transition of power.”
