Trump So Far Resistant To Invitation To Return To Twitter, Roll Around In Elon's Musk

Only a matter of time.

As of this writing, Twitter is still chugging along more or less as before despite Elon Musk's apparent efforts to burn the platform to the ground using $44 billion as kindling. How long this state of affairs can continue, with somewhere in the neighborhood of 40 percent of the staff it had a month ago and no payroll department, remains to be seen. But in a transparent attempt to goose engagement, the world's richest Twitter troll posted a poll Sunday wondering if the former inciter-in-chief should be reinstated to the platform. When Trump actually managed for the first time to win a popular vote, all his old tweets came back online. (Not linking, but it's creepy AF to be plunged back into the chaos leading up to the Capitol riot.)

"The people have spoken. Trump will be reinstated. Vox Populi, Vox Dei," Musk crowed, seemingly oblivious of the irony of the world's richest man buying an essential communications forum and claiming someone else is the voice of the all-powerful deity.

Thusfar Trump has not returned to bully on his favorite playground. This may have something to do with his attempt to cash in on his popularity with the competing Truth Social platform. Remember, the entire purpose of setting up a Dollar Store Twitter knockoff is to reap a massive payday by merging with the special purpose acquisition group (SPAC) Digital World Acquisition Corp (DWAC).

These assholes are already in hot water with the SEC for apparently flouting the rules that say a SPAC can't negotiate with the target company before going public. DWAC CEO Patrick Orlando was allegedly talking to Trump in March of 2021, despite putting out prospectuses in May, June, July, August, and September saying, “We have not selected any specific business combination target and we have not, nor has anyone on our behalf, initiated any substantive discussions, directly or indirectly, with any business combination target." In an SEC filing from June, DWAC admitted that its entire board of directors had been invited in for a little chat with a grand jury in the Southern District of New York (SDNY). So the prospects for a payout are already tenuous, even with Trump, the main draw of the platform, using it as a repository for his regular production of word vomit.

Meanwhile, as new media site Semafor notes, the licensing agreement between Trump Media and Technology Group (TMTG) and DWAC specifies that Trump has to post to Truth Social six hours before he posts the same content to any other site.

From December 22, 2021, until the expiration of 18 months thereafter, (the “TMTG Social Media Exclusivity Term”), President Trump has agreed to first channel any and all social media communications and posts coming from his personal profile to the Truth Social platform before posting that same social media communication and/or post to any other social media platform that is not Truth Social (collectively, “Non-TMTG Social Media”) until the expiration of “DJT/TMTG Social Media 6-Hour Exclusive” which means the period commencing when DJT posts any social media communication onto the Truth Social Platform and ending six (6) hours thereafter; provided that he may post social media communications from his personal profile that specifically relates to political messaging, political fundraising or get-out-the vote efforts at any time on any Non-TMTG social media platforms.

Astute observers will grok that the last sentence contains an exception that's probably big enough to drive a bus through, because what the hell else does Trump post about besides politics? In the past 24 hours he's shit on Republican candidates from Colorado and New Hampshire for failing to kiss his ass sufficiently and losing their races; ranted about the Justice Department appointing a special counsel to investigate him; and congratulated himself on the viewership numbers for his presidential announcement — all content that would appear to fall within the exception.

Semafor interviewed several experts with competing opinions on the legality of Trump decamping for Twitter, and/or cross posting at both sites at once. But whether or not shareholders would have recourse against him if he took the buyout and then tanked the platform by abandoning it, it's far from clear that Trump would allow a branded platform with his name on it to flop spectacularly, making him look like a loser as he heads into the election.

And for what? To prop up Elon Musk's failed gambit? PFFFT.

Naturally Musk has an answer for that , and it is sober and reflective, as befitting the CEO of three very serious companies.

“And lead us not into temptation …”

— Elon Musk (@Elon Musk) 1668993555 

These fuckers deserve each other.

OPEN THREAD.

[ Semafor ]

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