Twitter reverses 'permanent' ban on conservative commentator after fierce backlash

Conservative commentator Jesse Kelly's Twitter account was restored to the social media site Tuesday after it was allegedly permanently banned, according to The Hill.

Kelly is a Marine veteran who hosts a radio show in Houston and contributes to several conservative media outlets. He ran for Congress unsuccessfully in Arizona in 2010 and 2012.

About the ban: Users first discovered the ban over the weekend, receiving a message that the account had been suspended when they tried to view Kelly's profile.

Kelly shared a message he received from Twitter with numerous members of the media. Here's what Twitter told him:

"Your account was permanently suspended due to multiple or repeat violations of the Twitter Rules: https://twitter.com/rules.

This account will not be restored.

Please do not respond to this email as replies and new appeals for this account will not be monitored."

What Twitter said about the ban: According to The Hill, Twitter spokespeople responded to media inquiries about the ban by saying "The account was temporarily suspended for violating the Twitter Rules and has been reinstated. We have communicated directly with the account owner."

Twitter never acknowledged that Kelly had been told his account was permanently suspended, and according to Kelly, he never received an explanation for why he was ever banned at all.

Kelly saw it coming? Kelly told Fox News' Tucker Carlson in August that more conservatives would likely be banned in the future.

"They did exactly what I said they would do," Kelly said. "They came for Alex Jones first because he's a nut job and they wanted to see how the right would react. They got him and I knew they were coming for me. And they will come for you, too."

Congress got involved: At least two Republican congressmen spoke out against Kelly's ban and asked for an explanation. Sen.-elect Josh Hawley of Missouri and Sen. Ben Sasse of Nebraska addressed the issue online: