Vice President JD Vance was briefly suspended from the social media platform Bluesky shortly after joining on Wednesday. His first post welcomed users with a tongue-in-cheek comment about seeking “common sense political conversation.” He followed up by sharing Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas’ concurring opinion in United States v. Skrmetti, which supported Tennessee’s restrictions on transgender medical treatments for minors. Shortly after, screenshots on X revealed Vance’s account had been suspended. Bluesky later clarified the suspension was the result of automated systems mistakenly flagging the account as a potential impersonation. His profile was restored and verified by Thursday morning.

The incident unfolded amid rising political visibility for Vance, who is widely viewed as a potential frontrunner for the 2028 Republican presidential nomination. It also highlights growing tensions between the GOP’s populist wing and traditional conservative media. Rupert Murdoch’s outlets—including Fox News, The Wall Street Journal, and The New York Post—have escalated criticism of Vance, publishing a wave of negative coverage. Allies of Vance and Trump interpret this as pushback from “globalist” and “neocon” factions opposed to the administration’s nationalist agenda. They argue that legacy media is increasingly out of step with the Republican base, which now gravitates toward platforms more aligned with Trump-era priorities. The Bluesky episode, though minor, has become a flashpoint in the broader battle over narrative control and conservative identity in the post-Trump GOP.