Trump threatens to shut social media

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump on Wednesday threatened to close down social media platforms after Twitter labelled two of his tweets “unsubstantiated” and accused him of making false claims.

Twitter targeted tweets in which the president said that mail-in voting would lead to fraud and a “Rigged Election” in November. Under the tweets, Twitter posted a link which read “Get the facts about mail-in ballots” – a first for the social network which has long resisted calls to censure the president.

In response, Trump fought back, tweeting that “Republicans feel that Social Media Platforms totally silence conservatives voices. We will strongly regulate, or close them down, before we can ever allow this to happen.”