Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs (D) reportedly reached out to Twitter in 2020 to censor users who criticized her 2017 posts uncovered by Breitbart News, in which she claimed former President Donald Trump had a “neo-nazi base.”
Days after the 2020 election, Breitbart News reported that Hobbs said Trump had a “neo-nazi base” while she was serving as a Democrat state senator in 2017. Hobbs’ tweet appeared to be a reaction to the false narrative that Trump praised neo-nazi rioters in Charlottesville.
“.@realDonaldTrump has made it abundantly clear he’s more interested in pandering to his neo-nazi base than being @POTUS for all Americans,” Hobbs posted at the time.
“The President is on the side of the freaking Nazis. Don’t just say stuff – DO SOMETHING,” she added.
“It took you a day and a half to figure this out? Also if you’re not condemning @POTUS for not condemning nazis, it’s just words,” she wrote in the tweets uncovered by Breitbart News.
Trump did, in fact, condemn the neo-Nazis on multiple occasions in the aftermath of the Charlottesville riots.
As Breitbart News detailed:
- Aug. 12, 2017: Trump condemned “violence “on many sides” in Charlottesville after neo-Nazi and Antifa clashes
- Aug. 14, 2017: Trump condemned “neo-Nazis, white supremacists, and other hate groups” in White House statement
- Aug. 15, 2017: Trump condemned neo-Nazis “totally,” praised non-violent protesters “on both sides” of statue debate
On Thursday, Fox News revealed that Hobbs emailed Twitter in an attempt to censor critics who were upset with her posts about Trump and his base, relying on recently obtained emails.
As Fox News reported:
On Nov. 13, 2020, Hobbs emailed Twitter — using her official Arizona secretary of state email — asking the support team to take action against her online trolls.
Twitter asked for more information and for Hobbs to provide examples for her request, which Hobbs was unable to provide.
Hobbs’ request for Twitter to silence her critics came one day after Breitbart News published the report revealing her feelings about the Trump base.
In her response to Twitter, Hobbs claimed she was being harassed and abused by the “alt-right.”
“I am not sure I can provide the information you are asking for because I reported and then blocked multiple users at the same time,” Hobbs responded to Twitter. “The alt-right got a hold of a 3-year-old tweet on my account and have been sending harassing, abusive, and threatening tweets and direct messages for the last 2 days.”
AZCapitol’s Brian Anderson told Fox News the emails “leave no doubt that Katie Hobbs abused her position of power in government.”
“She violated the First Amendment rights of people across Arizona in order to suppress valid criticism and prop up her 2022 gubernatorial campaign,” Anderson said. “It’s imperative that further investigations be initiated to shine a light on just how far Hobbs’s unconstitutional censorship campaign went — and whether it continues today.”
Jordan Dixon-Hamilton is a reporter for Breitbart News. Write to him at jdixonhamilton@breitbart.com or follow him on Twitter.