The social media platform Parler is arguing in its case against Amazon that the tech giant forced Parler off line because President Trump was poised to joined after being banned from Twitter.
Parler attorney David Groesbeck argued Thursday in court that the conservative-lean learning site would have been a logical place for the president to go since he was unable to access his Twitter account, according to Politico.
Twitter suspended, then permanently banned Trump from posting after the Jan. 6 siege on the U.S. Capitol Building.
In the aftermath, Amazon Web Services’ decided to stop hosting Parler, which resulted in the suit.
“I believe AWS’s decision to terminate service to Parler was based, not on expressed concerns about Parler’s compliance with the AWS Agreement, but in part on a desire to deny President Trump a platform on any large social-media service,” Parler CEO John Matze said.
Parler said that it does not want to limit what users are allowed to post and has become popular among conservatives due to it being marketed as the free speech alternative to Twitter where right-wingers will not be censored.
Groesbeck also in Thursday’s hearing that Parler was not involved in the riot on Capitol Hill and urged Judge Barbara J. Rothstein to order Amazon Web Services to host the platform.
“AWS is alleging without evidence that Parler was used to incite the riots,” he said. “There is no evidence other than some anecdotal press references that Parler was involved … . Millions of Americans have had their voices silenced by AWS.”
