Trump blog page is permanently shut down

Former President Trump’s blog, where he shared statements with supporters after being banned from social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook, has been shut down.

Trump launched the website, dubbed “From the Desk of Donald Trump,” last month to communicate with supporters. The site now only allows users to submit their email addresses and phone numbers to sign up for updates from the former president.

Trump senior aide Jason Miller confirmed to The Hill that the blog will not be returning, calling it “auxiliary to the broader efforts we have and are working on.”

It was not immediately clear what other avenues Trump would pursue to communicate with his supporters.

A slew of social media platforms, including Twitter and Facebook, banned Trump in the wake of the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, citing his unsupported claims of widespread voter fraud in the 2020 presidential election.

Facebook last month announced that its ban on Trump’s account would continue following a decision issued by its independent Oversight Board. However, the board said an indefinite suspension was not appropriate, calling on Facebook to review the decision and develop a “proportionate response” within six months.

Twitter’s chief financial officer, Ned Segal, said earlier this year that Trump’s ban from the top social media platform is permanent, even if he runs for president again in 2024.

Interactions with posts on Trump’s blog dropped significantly in the weeks after it was launched, The Washington Post noted.

The newspaper reported 159,000 total social media interactions on the blog’s first day. But the following day, interactions dropped to 30,000 and did not surpass 15,000 interactions per day since that peak.