Former Trump Aide Starts Social-Media Platform Without Old Boss

(Bloomberg) -- A former senior adviser to Donald Trump is starting a new social-media platform, but the former president isn't involved and has no plans to join, according to a person familiar with the situation.

Jason Miller, who played roles in Trump's presidential campaigns and worked with him after he returned to private life, is chief executive of the closely held Gettr USA that's official launching the platform on July 4, according to a release. The platform, now available in app stores in beta versions, bills itself as an unbiased social network.

Trump has been banned by major social-media companies -- including Twitter Inc. and Facebook Inc. -- for his role in stoking the mob that attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. During his presidency, Trump relied on Twitter for everything from insulting rivals to major policy announcements.

The former president has been teasing that he'll soon have his own social-media platform from which he cannot be removed.

“There's a lot of platforms out there, that's what we're looking at, getting the right platform, a perfect platform, and I think you'll see something fairly soon,” Trump said on Dave Rubin's “Rubin Report” podcast last week.

The platform will have features such as the ability to post messages of as many as 777 characters and videos as long as three minutes, according to the release.

The app describes its purpose as “fighting cancel culture, promoting common sense, defending free speech, challenging social media monopolies, and creating a true marketplace of ideas.”

The launch comes amid a clash between the major technology companies and conservatives who accuse the platforms of trying to silence their views, an accusation that the companies have repeatedly denied.