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Thursday, November 12, 2026Nov 12

Trump gets Obama’s house, title — even his Twitter handle

The new @POTUS Twitter account for President Donald Trump is shown in this frame grab, Friday, Jan. 20, 2017.   The technological transition came just as Trump took the oath Friday, giving him a clean digital slate. The White House’s official Twitter and Facebook accounts were quickly scrubbed and rebranded. It’s the first time social media accounts have been a part of the transition.   (AP Photo)
The new @POTUS Twitter account for President Donald Trump is shown in this frame grab, Friday, Jan. 20, 2017. The technological transition came just as Trump took the oath Friday, giving him a clean digital slate. The White House’s official Twitter and Facebook accounts were quickly scrubbed and rebranded. It’s the first time social media accounts have been a part of the transition. (AP Photo) The new @POTUS Twitter account for President Donald Trump is shown in this frame grab, Friday, Jan. 20, 2017. The technological transition came just as Trump took the oath Friday, giving him a clean digital slate. The White House’s official Twitter and Facebook accounts were quickly scrubbed and rebranded. It’s the first time social media accounts have been a part of the transition. (AP Photo)

Donald Trump built his campaign on early morning tweet storms and hashtag-worthy slogans. Now president, he’s in control of the White House’s powerful social media arsenal, including the official @POTUS Twitter account that has nearly 14 million followers.

The technological transition came just as Trump took the oath of office Friday, giving him a clean digital slate while preserving hundreds of tweets and posts made during President Barack Obama’s time in office.

The White House’s official Twitter and Facebook accounts were quickly purged and rebranded for the new administration – the first time social media accounts have been a part of the transition.

Trump didn’t rush to use the @POTUS account.

Trump sent his first tweets as president from @realDonaldTrump, the personal account where his thousands of candid on everything from immigration to golf course conditions helped propel him into a political force.