When Officially Becomes Twitter Owner, Elon Musk Will Restore Suspended Donald Trump Account

Elon Musk will return Donald Trump's Twitter account. (photo: @mshambuliaji)

JAKARTA - World conglomerate Elon Musk said on Tuesday, May 10 that he will lift the Twitter ban on former US President Donald Trump when he officially buys the social media platform. This is the clearest signal yet of Musk's intention to reduce moderation on the microblogging platform.

Musk, the world's richest person and CEO of Tesla Inc, has signed a $44 billion deal to buy Twitter. He describes himself as "absolute free speech" but has also given specific details of his plans.

Musk is expected to become the interim CEO of Twitter after closing the deal with the social media company. This makes the question of when he will reinstate Trump's account already seen as an important test of how far Musk will go on Twitter.

Musk, speaking to the Financial Times Future of the Car conference, added that he and Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey believe permanent bans should be "very rare" and reserved for accounts that operate bots or spread spam.

Musk said the decision to ban Trump would strengthen Trump's views among politically inclined people. Musk also called the ban "morally wrong and utterly stupid."

The suspension of Trump's account, which has more than 88 million followers, silenced his main megaphone days before the end of his term and follows years of debate over how social media companies should moderate the accounts of powerful global leaders.

Trump was permanently suspended from Twitter shortly after the January 6 riots at the US Capitol. Twitter cited "the risk of further incitement to violence" in its decision.

Musk also said the platform should limit speech as required by law, and he told an EU official on Monday that EU policy was "very much in tune" with his own thinking, referring to a new law that imposes hefty fines on companies that do not do so to control illegal content such as advertising directed at children.

Republicans, who accuse San Francisco-based Twitter of bias against far-right views, have welcomed the prospect of Trump's return on the social media platform.

"He (Trump) should be wherever he can be," Republican Senator Rick Scott told reporters when asked about Musk's comments. "We shouldn't have social media companies limiting people's ability to get their message across."

While Democrats say Trump's potential reinstatement could pose a threat to democracy, some hope that Trump's frequent tweets about his personal opinions could disrupt their base and increase turnout in November's midterm congressional elections.

Twitter declined to comment on Trump's possible return to their platform.

Trump previously told Fox News that he would not return to Twitter if allowed. He now prefers his own social media app, Truth Social, a Twitter-like platform that launched on Apple's app store in late February. He also referred to Truth as a truth platform where users could post the "truth" instead of tweeting.

Trump has stepped up his message on the new platform after a slow start, posting about 50 times, mostly in the last week, to his 2.7 million followers. He averaged 18 tweets a day when he was president.

Trump himself is the chairman of the company that owns Truth Social, which merged with the blank check acquisition firm Digital World Acquisition Corp.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki said on Tuesday that the Twitter ban on Trump was a matter for the company itself to decide. The Joe Biden administration wants online platforms to protect free speech but also ensure they are not forums for disinformation.

During last conference, Musk said a deal to acquire Twitter could be done in two to three months in a "best case scenario."

Earlier on Tuesday, Twitter shares plunged to levels that indicated the stock market believed Musk was unlikely to make a $44 billion acquisition, even though he had initially agreed to the offer.

Musk's decision to go after Twitter has alarmed some Tesla investors and put pressure on the stock. Musk on Tuesday added that he would stay at Tesla "as long as I can be of use."