Twitter’s new owner has delighted conservative commentators all year
In a tweet to absolutely no one’s shock, Elon Musk instructed his sycophants to vote Republican in the midterm elections. The man who took over a company and promptly fired its board of directors and half its staff argued to his followers that “joint power curbs the worst excesses of both parties.”
The call for action comes after Musk tweeted in April, around the time he first teased buying the platform, that Twitter needed to remain “politically neutral” in order to earn “public trust.”
Musk has rubbed elbows with prominent conservatives seeking a hand in how he reshapes social media platforms. Billionaire Tesla promised drastic changes to how content and security standards are enforced on Twitter, under the guise of restoring “free speech” and fighting censorship. Musk’s takeover resulted in a wave of hate speech on the platform, scaring off advertisers who have now been encouraged by civil society groups to pull ads until Musk gives assurances that the website would not turn into a “landscape free for all hell” after him. Take responsibility.
Meanwhile, the billionaire appears to be taking cues about the platform’s future from conservative pundits and influencers, who are taking advantage of Musk’s obsession with controlling his mentions to tag him in their complaints. On Monday, Musk answered him conservative judicial activist Tom Fitton, indicating he thinks he has grounds to file suit against “activists” calling for advertiser boycotts against him. He told conservative organizer Mike Davis on Friday that he was preparing to run one “Thermonuclear Name and Shame” against critics and organizers calling for a boycott. He too agreed with Far-right influencer Ian Miles Cheong said it was time to “stop appeasing activists” calling for the platform to maintain content moderation policies.
Some on the right claim that Musk has directly reached out to their cause. Arizona Secretary of State candidate Mark Finchem credited Musk with restoring his accounts hours after his supporters bombarded Musk with petitions claiming Finchem was being censored and suppressed by the platform. Finchem has vowed not to concede if he loses Tuesday’s general election against Democrat Adrian Fontes.
Musk’s right-wing guidance is not a new development. He announced he had voted Republican for the first time earlier this year, tweeting that he had “voted for Mayra Flores – first time I’ve ever voted Republican” and predicting a “massive red wave in 2022.” Musk also recently moved from California to Texas, citing the move as the “last straw” regarding California’s Covid restrictions.
Flores has been linked to the QAnon conspiracy theory, and a number of the Republican candidates Musk wants his followers to vote for on Tuesday have spewed lies about the 2020 election. His push to put the party in control of the Congress seems to be at odds with his vision for the future of the platform he now holds. “Twitter must become the most accurate source of information for the world.” he tweeted Sunday night. “That’s our mission.”
