'I am grateful Elon Musk reached out to me': GOP senator's Twitter account unlocked after being slapped down over hunting photo

Twitter has reinstated Sen. Steve Daines' (R-Mont.) account after locking it over a profile photo featuring the lawmaker and his wife posing with an antelope after a hunt.

The platform had claimed that the photo broke its "rules against graphic violence or adult content in profile images" and instructed that the profile image would need to be deleted in order to unlock the account.

"I am grateful Elon Musk reached out to me to resolve this issue and am glad that he recognizes that free speech is a bedrock of our country, and acted quickly to reinstate my Twitter account after being made aware of its suspension," Daines said in a statement.

"The initial ban over the profile photo of my wife and me after a successful Montana antelope hunt was disappointing given the fact that it is no different than photos Montanans share on social media every day. It's our Montana way of life and we are proud of it. I am glad Elon Musk recognizes this. The rest of the country benefits from the acceptance of diverse thoughts and values, including Montana values," Daines added.

Daines has served in the Senate since 2015, and had previously served in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Wealthy business magnate Elon Musk acquired Twitter last year.

"This is being fixed. Policy against showing blood in profile pic is being amended to 'clearly showing blood without clicking on the profile pic'. The intent is to avoid people being forced to see gruesome profile pics," Musk tweeted. "Going forward, Twitter will be broadly accepting of different values, rather than trying to impose its own specific values on the world," he wrote in another post.

After taking over Twitter last year, Musk reinstated former President Donald Trump's account, which had been permanently suspended in early 2021, on the tail end of his term in office. Trump, who is running for president again, has not tweeted anything since being reinstated.

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