The tech billionaires are fighting for Donald Trump’s attention. At least, that’s what it looks like.
Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, donated $1 million to the president-elect’s inaugural fund, the company confirmed to POLITICO on Thursday. And this morning, it seemed like fellow billionaire Elon Musk has taken issue with its CEO, Mark Zuckerberg’s potential involvement in the new administration.
“Concerning,” Musk said on X, responding to a post from conservative commentator Ashley St. Clair claiming — without evidence — that Meta is “actively censoring conservatives right now.” While it’s unclear exactly what Musk was referring to, the original post St. Clair was responding to was a video of a suited up Zuckerberg wakesurfing with an American flag announcing the $1 million donation from an account titled “DogeDesigner.”
It’s not unusual for corporations to contribute to presidential inaugurations, but neither Zuckerberg nor Meta donated to Trump’s inaugural fund in 2017, or to President Biden’s fund in 2021.
The tech giant’s donation comes just weeks after Zuckerberg visited Mar-a-Lago to dine with Trump — an additional attempt from the company to mend relations with the Republican party’s MAGA wing after he banned the then-former president from the platform in 2021. Trump’s accounts have since been restored.
Trump and Zuckerberg’s fraught relationship is well documented. In Trump’s book, “Save America,” released in September, he claimed that Zuckerberg plotted against him during the 2020 election and that the Meta CEO would “spend the rest of his life in prison” if he did it again. In July, Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social that if elected, he would pursue “ELECTION FRAUDSTERS at levels never seen before, and they will be sent to prison for long periods of time. We already know who you are,” before directly addressing Zuckerberg. “DON’T DO IT! ZUCKERBUCKS, be careful!”
Meta spokesperson Andy Stone declined to comment on Musk’s post. Spokespeople for Musk via X did not immediately respond for comment.
