Musk's Twitter Deal Renews Partisan Debate Over Speech

A looser content moderation approach at Twitter under Elon Musk's ownership risks turning it into a fringe, extremist platform like 4chan, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., told us Thursday. “I’m concerned with what he’s rumored or said to believe” in terms of moderation, said Nadler: “That means you’re going to have all this disinformation on Twitter that wouldn’t have been previously allowed. That would concern me.” The Judiciary Committee will have to “wait and see” whether action is necessary, he said.

Republicans are looking forward to a more open, inclusive platform. Though Donald Trump said he won’t return to the platform if reinstated, Senate Commerce Committee ranking member Roger Wicker, R-Miss., told us Musk should allow the former president back on Twitter. “I just hope that, as [Musk] has stated, this becomes more of a public square, rather than protective of one ideology over another. ... Carrying a former president has a lot more that can be said for it than carrying the ayatollah, people like that. These platforms are really more like public accommodations than the private domain.”

Musk tweeted he's “against censorship that goes far beyond the law. If people want less free speech, they will ask government to pass laws to that effect. Therefore, going beyond the law is contrary to the will of the people.”

Senate Judiciary Committee ranking member Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, told us: “I’m a free speech guy, and if he wants to promote free speech in America, where we protect free speech, especially political free speech, every time you do something like that, it enhances our democracy,”

Critics should look to SpaceX, Starlink and Tesla as examples of Musk running “reasonably competent companies,” said Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C.: “A lot of people think that because he’s purchased Twitter that something bad’s going to happen.”

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., called the Twitter deal an “incredible event.” He noted during a news conference last week Republican concerns in the past about how the platform operates: “We’ll be watching with a good deal of interest because we’ve certainly had our share of complaints about the way it’s been run in the past.” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., speaking to reporters a few minutes before Republicans took the podium, said, “In many ways, Twitter has been a dark, dark place. I hope it doesn’t get any darker.”

Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., told us he will defer to Musk on whether Trump should be reinstated. On the purchase, Hawley said, “I think it’s great. I think it’s wonderful. I hope he’s serious about his free speech commitment. I assume he is. What would it be like to have a social media company actually committed to free speech?” He urged Musk to do a public audit of the platform’s content moderation and account suspension activity.

The deal raises concerns about the concentration of power, given Tesla’s Chinese supply chain, said Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Mark Warner, D-Va.: “That concerns me greatly. Some platforms have such an extraordinary amount of influence and control. I’m not sure it translates in traditional industries.”

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said he’s less concerned with Musk owning Twitter than he is about social media as a whole being “unregulated.” The largest companies in the “history of mankind” have “enormous control” over information and communication, he said, citing the impact on privacy, foreign interference and child exploitation. Musk “will probably have a more open view about Twitter, more in line with what I think, but it’s not about him,” he told us: It’s about Big Tech platforms being unaccountable through law and regulation. Graham suggested Congress establish a commission like the Nuclear Regulatory Commission that's solely focused on social media platforms. Asked about his Communications Decency Act Section 230 legislation, the Earn It Act (see 2202240065), Graham called the bill a “great step in the right direction, but it only deals with one small sliver of the pie.” The bill awaits full Senate consideration after passing the Senate Judiciary Committee by voice vote.

The concentration of power is concerning, said Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kan. “I hate the continued concentration of social media platforms. They’re just all too powerful and all-encompassing. Now it’s one man.”

House Republicans criticized the Department of Homeland Security’s new Disinformation Governance Board’s director, Nina Jankowicz, a former Wilson Center disinformation fellow. Jankowicz tweeted: “I shudder to think about if free speech absolutists were taking over more platforms, what that would look like for the marginalized communities, … which are already shouldering … disproportionate amounts of this abuse.” House Intelligence Committee ranking member Michael Turner, R-Ohio, and House Homeland Security Committee ranking member John Katko, R-N.Y., requested information Friday about formation of the board and the appointment of Jankowicz.