Twitter suspends small business advocacy group that called for regulating Big Tech as utilities

Twitter has suspended the account of the Job Creators Network, a nonpartisan group that advocates for small businesses and policies that protect Main Street jobs.

According to the group, the social media giant sent them a message late last week saying JCN had violated Twitter's "rules against platform manipulation and spam."

Company President and CEO Alfredo Ortiz rejects that claim, saying the deplatforming effort is retaliation against JCN for implying that Twitter should be regulated as a utility.

"Twitter has silenced JCN and the 30 million small business owners it represents after JCN implied that the tech giant should be regulated as a utility," Ortiz said in a statement. "Given that JCN’s internal review demonstrates we did not violate Twitter's terms and conditions, the tech giant's bold move is likely pure retaliation against us for our position on tech regulations."

Twitter on Monday did not respond immediately to several attempts to contact the company to learn why JCN, which advocates for lower taxes and progressive policies, had been removed from the site. 

Last month, Ortiz wrote an op-ed published by RealClearPolitics titled, "Big Tech's Conservative Purge Changes the Free Speech Debate."

JCN Chief Communications Officer Elaine Parker on Monday told the "John Solomon Reports" podcast the op-ed argued for Washington to begin regulating social media platforms and other tech giants as utilities.

"The reason behind that is because it would it would preclude them from excluding services based on political beliefs and ideology," Parker told host John Solomon. "I mean, when when you're getting your phone service through AT&T, they don't care who you vote for, or who you support or what your political background is. They just want to sell you a service ... right?"

The deplatforming of JCN signifies, to Ortiz, that the points he shared in his opinion essay become truer by the day.

"Twitter's retribution signifies a new front in the company's aggressive censorship efforts," he also said. "The biggest losers are American small business owners whose voices are silenced by this tech oligarch. Twitter's violation of free speech and First Amendment values are outrageous and indefensible. Their latest actions further bolster our position that social media companies need further regulation and more small business competitors. We have appealed Twitter's ban, and expect an explanation and apology."