Twitter takes down GOP lawmaker’s campaign ad

Twitter took down a campaign ad from Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) that referenced “baby body parts,” the congresswoman’s campaign said on Monday.

The video, which can still be seen in Blackburn’s Twitter feed, was part of her recently-launched bid to succeed Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), who announced last month that he would not be seeking reelection.

“I fought Planned Parenthood and we stopped the sale of baby body parts, thank God,” Blackburn says in the ad.

A Twitter spokesman confirmed that the platform had suspended the promoted advertisement from the campaign’s account, though he emphasized that the original tweet remains up.

The spokesman also pointed to a passage from the company’s public advertising policy that reads, “Twitter provides a platform for its users to share and receive a wide range of ideas and content, and we greatly value and defend our users’ ability to express themselves.”

“Advertisers on Twitter have access to a wide range of targeting option to promote their Tweets to a wider audience,” it continues. “Because of this, advertisers on Twitter have the power to reach an audience beyond the users who choose to follow their account.”

Blackburn chairs a House Energy and Commerce subcommittee on technology.

{mosads}She also chaired a House panel investigating the use of fetal tissue for research following the 2015 release of a series of undercover videos targeting Planned Parenthood.

The heavily-edited videos showed Planned Parenthood employees discussing the transfer of tissue from aborted fetuses from the organization to research laboratories.

The creators of the video allege Planned Parenthood sells the tissue, but a number of state investigations have failed to find any evidence of that.

Donating the tissue is legal, with consent from the woman, but selling it is illegal in the U.S. Clinics are allowed to recover some costs, like handling and shipping.

Blackburn’s committee eventually recommended in its final report that federal funding be banned for research on fetal tissue obtained through elective abortions.

“I’m being censored for telling the truth,” Blackburn wrote to supporters Monday in a fundraising email. 
”Twitter has shut down my announcement video advertising. Silicon Valley elites are trying to impose their values on us. When I talked about our legislative accomplishments to stop the sale of baby body parts, they responded by calling our ad ‘inflammatory’ and ‘negative.’”