It appears as though right-wing mega-plutocrat and flaming car maker Elon Musk has decided to purchase the social media site Twitter for the same amount that was proposed six months ago. "Appears" because Musk is known for wiggling around in pursuit of Twitter, which he hopes to turn into a "free speech" platform for the Malignant Loser, white supremacists, QAnon quackery and other hate speech purveyors. His earlier hangup was supposedly getting an accurate count of users, minus bots and other annoyances. The Associated Press has the current status on the purchase from the link above:
"Experts say that behind the scenes, banks could be scrambling to find buyers for $12.5 billion in debt from the deal, and Musk is trying to hold together a group of equity investors that is pitching in billions more. The erratic billionaire is on the hook for the rest.
The fighting continued Thursday, when Musk’s attorneys said Twitter is refusing to accept his revived bid to buy the company. They sought to delay an upcoming trial on Twitter’s lawsuit that could force him to complete the deal.
But Twitter’s attorneys said it’s Musk who is holding everything up, and his effort to put the trial on hold 'is an invitation to further mischief and delay.'” (our emphasis)
Musk, should he end up purchasing Twitter, would be a one-man wrecking crew for anyone who disagrees with him and his social Darwinist approach to life. He's already promised to have the Malignant Loser invited back to Twitter, along with such vile characters as Alex Jones and Marjorie Taylor Greene, according to the New York Times' Kevin Roose:
"Mr. Musk, who has framed his bid for Twitter as an attempt to preserve free speech on the platform, has long said that, if successful, he would allow former President Donald J. Trump to reclaim his Twitter account, which was permanently suspended last year after the Jan. 6 insurrection at the Capitol.
That will happen almost immediately, I predict. (And, yes, Mr. Trump will come back to Twitter if he’s invited, no matter how much fun he’s having on Truth Social.)
But Mr. Musk’s 'replatforming' will extend far beyond the former president. A host of right-wing culture warriors could come back to the service with Mr. Musk’s blessing, including those who were barred for expressing hateful views, spreading false conspiracy theories and harassing other users." (our emphasis)
The impacts on future elections could be profound if Musk succeeds in his purchase. Let's hope his investors and potential partners back out and leave Musk empty handed.
BONUS: Dan Drezner notes that Musk's recent, Putin-friendly suggestions concerning Russia's war in Ukraine shows him to be a dangerous foreign policy dilettante.
