Fla. state House candidate banned from Twitter for suggesting violence against federal officials
A candidate running for a seat in Florida’s state House was banned on Twitter on Thursday after he advocated violence against the FBI and other federal agencies.
“Under my plan, all Floridians will have permission to shoot FBI, IRS, ATF and all other feds ON SIGHT!” tweeted Luis Miguel (R), who is running in the 20th district of the Florida House, according to Florida Politics. “Let freedom ring!”
Miguel told Florida Politics that he stands by the “plan” he proposed earlier in the week because the IRS has been “weaponized by dissident forces,” saying that his permanent suspension from Twitter “doesn’t affect (him) at all.”
The Hill has reached out to Miguel for comment on the suspension.
A spokesperson for Twitter told The Hill that the account @LuisMiguelUS is “permanently suspended for violating our hateful conduct policy.”
“You may not promote violence against or directly attack or threaten other people on the basis of race, ethnicity, national origin, caste, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, religious affiliation, age, disability, or serious disease,” reads Twitter’s policy on hateful conduct.
The news comes after members of the GOP have slammed the FBI following the bureau’s search of former President Trump’s home in Palm Beach, Fla. The former president’s Mar-a-Lago estate was searched for classified documents that the Department of Justice suspected were taken following Trump’s loss in 2020.
In addition, Republicans have railed against the IRS after President Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) into law. The spending bill would provide $80 billion in funding to the agency over the next 10 years to help enforce provisions in the IRA. However, members of the GOP have claimed that the funding would be used to hire tens of thousands of agents and audits would increase for non-wealthy Americans.
Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) went to far as to warn Americans not to apply for positions at the IRS since a Republican majority would immediately seek to reverse the funding increase.
Miguel’s Facebook and Instagram pages are also inaccessible. Facebook confirmed to The Hill that both accounts were deleted for “repeated violation of our policies.”
Miguel is running against incumbent Rep. Bobby Payne (R) on Tuesday, according to The St. Augustine Record, in a northern district of the Florida House. Payne currently represents district 19 but is running to represent district 20 after redistricting in the state.
One of them will head to the general election on Nov. 8 to face a Democratic opponent.
The Hill has reached out to Payne for comment on Miguel’s proposal of shooting federal officials.
Updated 10:40 a.m.
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