The cases likely won’t hold up in court, but that doesn’t really matter.
Donald Trump filed lawsuits against Facebook, Twitter, and Google on Wednesday, accusing the companies of violating his and other conservatives’ First Amendment rights. But winning these lawsuits seems to be beside the point for Trump. Legal experts say these are frivolous cases likely to be thrown out of court, but Trump is already using them as a way to fundraise from supporters. The suits are also a convenient distraction from the ongoing New York state investigation into his company’s alleged tax fraud, which has been the main story about Trump in the news lately. It’s not the first time Trump has used this tactic. During his presidency, Trump repeatedly attacked tech companies — despite the fact that he benefited enormously from his reach on social media platforms like Twitter — by making unfounded claims that these firms have an anti-conservative bias. And though his attempts to penalize the tech industry with unenforceable executive orders, bogus “tech summits,” and vague threats have never seriously interfered with Facebook’s, Google’s, or Twitter’s ability to run their businesses, these efforts have served Trump well politically. He’s garnered support among his followers, collected money, and dominated headlines as a crusader against a liberal Silicon Valley.
