Representative Jim Banks has been suspended from Twitter after misgendering Assistant Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine in a recent tweet, CBS News reports.
Levine, a real trailblazer, very recently became the first openly transgender four-star officer in US military history, the Department of Health and Human Services announced on October 19.
She is also the first female four-star admiral in the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps' history.
But instead of praising Levine for her incredible accomplishment, Banks, a Republican from Indiana, took to Twitter last Tuesday to slam the decision.
He wrote: "The title of first female four-star officer gets taken by a man."
The tweet is no longer available as Banks' Twitter account has been locked.
Levine, a former pediatrician, was nominated by President Joe Biden in January to serve as assistant secretary for health at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Banks' account was suspended as he violated Twitter's "hateful conduct policy," which aims to put a stop to the spread of "violence against or directly attack or threaten other people on the basis of race, ethnicity, national origin, caste, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, religious affiliation, age, disability, or serious disease."
One part of the policy prohibits "repeated and/or non-consensual slurs, epithets, racist and sexist tropes, or other content that degrades someone," which "includes targeted misgendering or deadnaming of transgender individuals."
In the wake of the suspension, Banks took to his personal Twitter account - separate from his political account - to defend his stance on the matter.
The Republican congressman wrote on Twitter: "Twitter has suspended my official account for posting a statement of FACT. I won’t back down. I’ll be posting on my personal account for the time being.
"Please Retweet this message and follow me -> @Jim_Banks . Big Tech must be held accountable!"
In a statement to CBS News, a Twitter spokesperson confirmed Banks' account was temporarily suspended for violating the platform's rules and regulations on user conduct.
"The account owner is required to delete the violative Tweet before regaining access to their account," the spokesperson said.
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