Former President Donald Trump returned to X – formerly known as Twitter – on Thursday, shortly after being arrested over his alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 election in Georgia.
In his first post since being banned by then-Twitter over two years ago, Trump shared a photo of his mugshot, as well as a link to a website soliciting donations.
“ELECTION INTERFERENCE; NEVER SURRENDER!” Trump’s post stated.
Trump’s post garnered 1.1 million likes by Friday morning, and over 139 million views.
X exploded with activity over Trump’s post, with both supporters and opponents of the former president commenting on his return.
Billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk, owner of Twitter, shared Trump’s post and wrote, “Next-level.”
“He’s back. Let the games begin,” posted author and clinical psychologist Dr. Jordan Peterson.
“This man is fighting for us. Republicans can no longer pretend this isn’t happening. Shame on the corrupt elites & donor class who have done everything to undermine this man,” wrote ret. Marine Corps Gunnery Sergeant Jessie Jane Duff. “No candidate for President has the courage to go into the lion’s den like President Donald J. Trump.”
“People can disagree on a lot of things, but anyone who supports or is quiet about what is being done to Trump does not deserve your support. Politically motivated arrests of political opponents will rip us apart and destroy America and are contrary to the American way of life,” posted Matthew J. Peterson.
“You are a disgrace, @realDonaldTrump,” posted author Dr. Jeffrey Guterman.
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis indicted Trump earlier this month. The 41-count indictment also targeted lawyers John Eastman, Sidney Powell, Kenneth Chesebro, Jenna Ellis, and Ray Smith, among others, who were each charged with violating the state’s RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization) act.
The website Trump included in his X post featured the following message:
The American people know what’s going on. What has taken place is a travesty of justice and ELECTION INTERFERENCE. The Left wants to intimidate YOU out of voting for a political outsider who puts the American people FIRST. But today, I walked into the lion’s den with one simple message on behalf of our entire movement: I WILL NEVER SURRENDER OUR MISSION TO SAVE AMERICA.
