Trump vows revenge on Facebook’s Zuckerberg when he’s ‘back in the White House’

Former president free to run for White House again after Senate failed to convict him at impeachment trial

Donald Trump has vowed revenge on Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg when he’s “back in the White House” as he dropped another hint he will run in 2024.

The former president reacted angrily towards the social media giant’s CEO after Facebook banned him from using its platforms until at least January 2023.

And Mr Trump’s latest statement on the ban hinted that he would run for president again after losing the White House to Joe Biden last November after just one term in office.

“Next time I’m in the White House there will be no more dinners, at his request, with Mark Zuckerberg and his wife. It will be all business!” said Mr Trump on Friday.

It was the second statement within hours from Mr Trump, who had earlier in the day branded his ban an “insult” to his supporters and accused the tech company of “censoring and silencing” them.

Facebook announced the two-year ban for Mr Trump and said that he will only be allowed back onto its platform at the end of that period if the “risk to public safety has receded”.

Facebook’s independent Oversight Board upheld the initial suspension of Mr Trump last month, but it criticised the company over the indefinite time period, which led Mr Zuckerberg to introduce the new rules.

Mr Trump was suspended by Facebook in the wake of the 6 January attack on the US Capitol, in which his supporters tried to prevent the certification of Mr Biden’s win.

Despite a national string of legal defeats following the election loss, he has continued to falsely claim that the election was “stolen” from him, without providing any evidence.

Now he could be set to try and defeat Mr Biden in 2024 – assuming the incumbent decides to run for a second term, as he has suggested he will – despite the deadly insurrection and becoming the only president in the country’s history to be twice impeached.

Mr Trump, who would be 78 on inauguration day in January 2025, was not convicted at either Senate impeachment trial and is free to run for office again.

“There’s a continued, enduring interest and folks encouraging him to run in 2024, but he’s in no rush to make a decision. And he’ll do that at the appropriate time,” his spokesperson Jason Miller told the Associated Press.

Mr Trump kicked off his political comeback with a speech at the right-wing Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) event in Florida in February, and will head to North Carolina this weekend to speak at an annual Republican Party convention.

He is also expected to address a CPAC event in Texas next month, and his aides have talked about him possibly holding rallies in Florida, Georgia and Ohio over the summer.