Meta, the parent company of Facebook, recently announced via its President of Global Affairs that it intends to reinstate former President Donald Trump Facebook account in the coming weeks.

In their statement, Meta stated that, through its oversight board, Trump was initially suspended for only a period of two years, following his statements regarding the January 6 capital riot. In their announcement, they stated that Trump will be subject to heighten guard rails with each repeated violation carrying a suspension of one month to two years.

Social media platforms, absolutely critical. Now it is for any politician, or even person for that matter, to participate in the public dialogue. Trump’s actions during January 6th were obviously dangerous, and did end up causing real world harm. However, being removed from a major social media platform for two years is extreme when you consider how critical a former presidents speech is in the public discourse, and how he will likely continue to participate in politics.