Tesla CEO Elon Musk has said he will lift a permanent ban on former US President Donald Trump from Twitter if he pursues a plan to buy the social media.
Speaking virtually at the upcoming auto industry summit, he said banning Trump from Twitter was “morally bad” and “extremely stupid.”
Permanent bans on Twitter accounts should be rare and apply to accounts that are fraudulent or robotic, he said.
In January 2021, Twitter banned Trump’s account for “inciting violence” after a riot in the US Capitol.
I think this was a mistake because it alienated a large part of the country to Twitter and ultimately did not lead to the removal of Donald Trump’s voice. I think I will lift the permanent ban.
Elon Musk
“I think it was a mistake because it alienated a large part of the country [Twitter] and did not ultimately lead to the removal of Donald Trump’s voice,” Musk said. “I think I will lift the permanent ban.”
He stressed, however, that he does not yet own Twitter, so this has not been decided yet. It was announced last month that Twitter agreed to sell the company to Ilan Mask for $ 44 billion.
Trump has previously said he has no plans to rejoin Twitter, even if his account is restored. He told Fox News last month that he would instead focus on his own platform, Social Truth.
“I will not return to Twitter,” he said. I’m staying in Truth. I hope Ilan buys Twitter because it makes improvements. “He is a good man, but I will stay in Truth.” Trump had more than 80 million followers on Twitter.
Musk said Twitter is now left-leaning because it is located in San Francisco. He said the bias would undermine confidence in the rest of the United States and the world.
He stressed that Twitter should be rid of bots and scammers to be a place to exchange ideas.
