Ala. Secretary of State after Trump Twitter ruling: 'I'm not unblocking anybody'
Andrew J. Yawn
Alabama Secretary of State John Merrill said he has no intention of unblocking anybody on social media after a federal judge ruled President Donald Trump's blocking of Twitter followers a violation of the First Amendment.
The ruling was specific to Trump only, according to coverage by the Washington Post, but it may have set an important precedent as online boundaries for public officials are defined within the context of public records and freedom of speech.
Merrill, who is infamous for blocking those who disagree with him as well as those he calls "trolls" on Twitter, said he will continue removing followers from his digital presence if he feels so inclined.
"I'm not unblocking anybody I've already blocked, because there's a reason those people were blocked. Anyone else that I feel needs to be blocked in the future will also be blocked. Anybody who wants to contact me can call me on my cellphone at 334-328-2787. Because I work for the people of Alabama. Roll Tide," Merrill said.
A Twitter search showed several instances where followers engaged Merrill on Twitter at his @JohnHMerrill handle before later claiming the secretary of state blocked them.
One of the most prominent followers blocked appears to be Rick Hasen, an election law expert at University of California-Irvine, who tweeted that Merrill blocked him after he corrected Merrill about Alabama law regarding recounts.
Merrill appeared on CNN following U.S. Sen. Doug Jones' victory over former Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore and said Moore could pay for a recount if the margin of victory was more than 0.5 percent. Hasen wrote on his blog, ElectionLawBlog.com, that "the statute does not allow this for federal offices" and took to Twitter to correct Merrill directly.
Hours later, Hasen tweeted, "And rather than respond to me on the merits, the Alabama Secretary of State, its chief election officer, has blocked me on Twitter. Unreal."
Social media has become a topic of legal conversation during the Trump presidency due to the president's consistent use of the platform for commentary on current events.
The @POTUS handle used first by President Barack Obama is now Trump's to use, though Trump prefers his personal Twitter account @realDonaldTrump.
There has also been conversation about whether or not Trump can delete tweets from his personal account due to the Presidential Records Act. Trump thrice tweeted support for former Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange in the Republican primary for Alabama's U.S. Senate race last year. Trump deleted the tweets after Strange lost to Moore, but those tweets have been saved by ProPublica, which archives all tweets deleted from Trump's personal account.
Similarly, the secretary of state's office has its own Twitter account, which Merrill said anybody can follow.
"We don't block any comments shared there," Merrill said.
But Merrill said that he will continue to operate his personal account as he pleases, blocking anybody he deems a "troll."
Merrill asked specifically that his cellphone number be included in this article, a number that is also found on his business card.
"Anybody that wants to reach me can call anytime they want," Merrill said. "But people don't always get to choose the method in which they get to contact me. The people who have tried to use my Twitter account for something other than asking me a direct question about an issue or commenting on what I have posted about things we're involved in, they lose that privilege if they choose to use it for some purpose other than direct communication. I don't argue with people on Twitter and I'm not going to."
It's unknown how many people are blocked by Merrill's personal account.
Merrill said the worst comment he ever received was "when someone said they were glad my daddy was dead."
"I didn't give that fool my cellphone number. I just went ahead and blocked him," Merrill said.