(Bloomberg). Twitter Inc. has suspended the official account of Representative Jim Banks for calling Dr. Rachel Levine, Assistant Health and Human Services Secretary a man.
Banks, a Republican from Indiana who is a top conservative in Congress, broke Twitter's terms of service. This prohibits users from harassing anyone based on gender identity. In a tweet, he said the following: Levine, a transgender woman would be sworn into the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps as a four star admiral. Levine will become the first woman to attain that rank.
Banks tweeted that the title of first female four star officer is being taken by a male. Twitter took down the tweet on Saturday because it was in violation of its rules.
Twitter prohibits users from being attacked based on their race, ethnicity, or gender identity. Its rules prohibit misgendering transgender people.
Banks was adamant on his personal account. He claimed that his official account was suspended after he posted a fact, without specifying exactly what he wrote. He said, "I won't back down."
Banks is the chairman of the Republican Study Committee. This caucus, which consists of conservative House Republicans, helps the party formulate its policies. The previous chairmen are former Vice President Mike Pence (who represented Indiana's 6th District in Congress) and Representative Steve Scalise, who is the second-ranking Republican.
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