As reported by The Wall Street Journal and corroborated by persons familiar with the case, the settlement is relief from a string of clashes between social media behemoths and politicians.
The suspension of Trump’s account
After the January 6 Capitol riot, Twitter, at the time under the helm of Jack Dorsey suspended President Trump on January 8, 2021. Citing the “risk of further incitement of violence” as justification, the company provided the main reason for suspension in a press statement. It was a larger move among social media rivals to corral Trump’s online presence during the era of turbulent American politics.
Legal action by Trump
President Trump sued Twitter in July 2021 for asserting that Twitter’s action was a violation of his First Amendment rights by over censoring his speech. The action alleged that the suspension of Twitter amounted to unlawful and unconstitutional censorship of free speech. In May 2022, a US District Judge ruled the case dismissed based on the fact that as Twitter was a private platform, it was not obligated by the First Amendment restriction. Rather than be intimidated, Trump attorneys contested the ruling and left the matter hanging on the judicial courts.
Elon Musk purchase and revival of Trump’s account
Trump-Twitter connection was dramatically altered after Elon Musk acquired Twitter in October 2022 and renamed it X. Immediately after taking power, Musk restored Trump’s account, granting him temporary relief from his earlier suspension. This was universally understood as an attempt to reinstate what Musk believed was a free speech platform. Even this sacrifice failed to discourage President Trump from initiating legal proceedings against the company, which received the recent settlement agreement.
Settlement details
X will pay the lawsuit with President Trump for a sum of approximately $10 million, close sources of the case reveal. The funds will be used to pay for Trump’s lawyers’ fees, and the remaining funds will be employed to pay for his subsequent presidential library. The settlement follows Trump and Meta Platforms, the owners of Instagram and Facebook, coming to a similar agreement to pay an equal $25 million to settle the same suit to reinstate Trump’s accounts after the Capitol was stormed.
The Trump-Musk alliance
The Trump-X-President deal is ironic given the fact that Trump and Elon Musk had a close association. Trump’s loudest fund man, Musk contributed more than $250 million to Trump’s campaign. Upon Trump’s election as President, Musk was given the role of administrator of the new Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) as a special government employee who would report to the President. Musk has been challenged with reforming the federal bureaucracy and curbing government expenditures since his appointment.
Prospective legal controversies
The X and President Trump deal is among a series of court deals between the President and the tech tycoons. In addition to the X and Meta deals, Trump lawyers are also negotiating a deal with Google regarding the temporary suspension of his YouTube account following the January 6 incidents. The lawsuits are an indicator of the ongoing battle between the social media firms and government authorities over issues of content moderation and free speech boundaries.
