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Sarah Sanders upset over losing 50K followers as Twitter purges QAnon accounts, Internet slams 'cult mentality'

'The radical left and their big tech allies cannot marginalize, censor or silence the American people. This is not China, this is United States of America, and we are a free country," Sanders wrote

Former White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders was slammed on Twitter after she whined about losing 50,000 followers after the social media company began purging its platform of potential White supremacists and QAnon conspiracy theorists, following the Capitol Hill siege on January 6.

"I’ve lost 50k+ followers this week. The radical left and their big tech allies cannot marginalize, censor, or silence the American people. This is not China, this is United States of America, and we are a free country," Sanders wrote on Sunday, January 10. She also included a screenshot of the Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo's tweet, which showed a number of conservative leaders, including himself, having lost followers.  

Her tweet came after a Twitter spokesperson told NBC News in a statement: "We’ve been clear that we will take strong enforcement action on behavior that has the potential to lead to offline harm, and given the renewed potential for violence surrounding this type of behavior in the coming days, we will permanently suspend accounts that are solely dedicated to sharing QAnon content."

A teacher at Sanders' high school was one of the first to respond to her tweet, writing, "You were a student at Little Rock Central High when I taught AP Government there, but you didn't take the advanced class. If you had, maybe you would better understand the First Amendment and the difference between limits on government and freedoms for private individuals."

Soon enough a number of well-known personalities from journalists to authors expressed their anger at Sanders' rhetoric. New York Times reporter Astead Wesley tweeted, "I can't take these 'I lost followers' tweets seriously???? Ppl died!????" CN Host Jake Tapper wrote, "I would tell you how many followers I have lost but I have no idea how many i had before because I’m an adult."

Author Stephen King wrote, "Sarah Huckabee Sanders is blaming Big Tech because she's lost 50K followers. Possibly they've just gotten a bellyful of her." The President's niece, Mary Trump, tweeted, "I haven't lost any followers in the last couple of days. Maybe because I'm not a fascist? "

Conservative political commentator Eric Bolling wrote, "Capitol Hill Officer Brian D Sicknick lost more than Twitter followers this week. Can we all please take a break from complaining about losing Twitter followers.. and think about this man and his family? He went to work Wednesday, and never came home. RIP Ofc Sicknick."

Soon many more joined in. "5 people are dead and the thing Sarah Sanders is furious about is the Twitter followers she lost," one user asked while another said, "Well said, Sarah! The country must stop focusing on the loss of life at the Capitol and turn its attention instead to the loss of Sarah Sanders' Twitter followers. We must unify and come together and deal with the truly important issues. Thank you."

A third commented, "I can’t believe Sarah Sanders even has tens of thousands of Twitter followers." One more said, "Her, Sarah Sanders tweeting about losing 50,000 followers, the rest of his once group playground woman bullies really need to just sit down and shut up. It continues to remind me of cult mentality." Another wrote, "Sarah Sanders, focused on number of Twitter followers. Does Sanders know how many Americans got sick with #Covid19 today or how many died today?"

A user remarked, "Interesting that the response to a private company acting in what it considers to be its best interests is cool when it means poor immigrant employees die, but when it means Sarah Sanders and Matt Gaetz lose a few followers it's communist China."

Another quipped, "Twitter is removing White supremacists and domestic terrorists. If you're a public figure and you're complaining because you just lost a bunch of followers, it's because you were being followed by a bunch of White supremacists and domestic terrorists."