Insiders within both of the two major U.S. political parties have expressed concern that billionaire Elon Musk’s recent purchase of Twitter could potentially result in former President Donald Trump being allowed back on the platform.
Trump was expelledMusk was arrested more than a year ago for uttering incendiary remarks regarding the attack on Washington’s Capitol Building by a mob composed of his loyalists. It happened on January 6, 2021. Although Musk has not yet stated whether he would lift Trump’s ban from the site, comments he made after his $44 billion purchase of Twitter on MondayIt seems that he is moving in that direction.
Musk has described himself as an “absolutist” of free speech principlesDespite his documented history of censoring workers for expressing prounion sentiments, he has not yet been charged. He recently said in a statement that “Twitter is the digital town square where matters vital to the future of humanity are debated.”
Both Democrats and Republicans are worried that Musk’s purchase of the site could mean Trump’s return. According to reporting from CNBC, officials in the Biden White House are “closely watching the deal,” and fear that Trump’s potential Twitter comeback might result in an increase in disinformation, as the former president frequently used the platform to promote lies back when he was allowed on the site.
“Trump will use Twitter to do far more damage to regain power in 2022 and 2024 while Elon Musk has given no indication that he will do anything to stop him,” Mary Anne Marsh, a veteran Democratic strategist, said to CNBC.
Republicans seem to be equally concerned about Trump returning to Twitter. According to a report from Politico, “no one is more petrified” about the potential return of the former president to the platform “than members of Trump’s own party.”
A series of calls will result in the following: Politico reporters made on Monday night to Republican insiders, not a single one spoke positively about the possibility that Trump would be allowed to return to the platform.”Every single one of them told us that they hoped the former president stays the hell away from Twitter,” the news agency reported.
Republican strategists are worried that if Trump returned to the site, it could hurt the GOP’s chances to flip control of either house of Congress in this year’s midterm races. While most prognosticators have predicted that Republicans will winSome polls have shown that the race for Congress will be tightIt is not the slam-dunk that some Republicans claim it will be.
Republicans claim that Trump’s erratic tweeting would not work in their favor.
“If I’m a Democrat, I’d Pray that Elon Musk puts Trump right back on Twitter,” one GOP House leadership aide told Politico. A Trump return to the site is “enough to create headaches — and it’s enough to probably cost us a couple seats,” that aide added.
Trump has claimed that he won’t return to TwitterTrump is instead promoting Truth Social on social media, and this is what he said. “I want everybody to come over to TRUTH — conservatives, liberals, whatever,” Trump said in a Fox News Interview this week
But because Trump’s site has It has failed miserably since it was opened earlier this year — and because He sued Twitter to have his account reactivated last fall. — most are guessing Trump will attempt to return to Twitter at some point.
Trump “loved his Twitter. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise,” an adviser close to Trump said.
“The lure of Twitter … may prove as irresistible for Trump,” GOP strategist Doug Heye said to Politico, adding that there’s “no faster way for Trump to be front and center [in] the political conversation than rejoining Twitter, and he knows that.”
