A man of many words was sparing with them Monday, after Elon Musk purchased a chunk of Twitter shares and gave rise to speculation that a plot of dimensions unknown is afoot.
The Tesla and SpaceX CEO bought a 9.2 percent stake in Twitter, making him the largest single stockholder, in a $2.89 billion deal, according to The Washington Post.
“Oh hi lol,” Musk tweeted Monday.
As of Monday night, the comment was nearing half a million likes and had surpassed 32,000 retweets.
Oh hi lol
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 4, 2022
The Post noted that Musk’s Securities and Exchange commission filing regarding the sale was dated March 14, almost two weeks before Musk teased social media by asking whether Twitter adhered to the values of free speech.
Although Musk was quiet Monday, Musk’s former words seemed to loom large, including a 2021 tweet over Twitter’s decision to ban former President Donald Trump.
“A lot of people are going to be super unhappy with West Coast high tech as the de facto arbiter of free speech,” he tweeted then.
Trump loomed large on the minds of several commenters Monday.
Now that @ElonMusk is Twitter’s largest shareholder, it’s time to lift the political censorship.
Oh… and BRING BACK TRUMP!
— Lauren Boebert (@laurenboebert) April 4, 2022
“Now that @ElonMusk is Twitter’s largest shareholder, it’s time to lift the political censorship. Oh… and BRING BACK TRUMP!” tweeted Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert of Colorado.
She was not alone.
Now that @elonmusk is Twitter’s largest shareholder, he should demand the end of political censorship, company-wide reform, and the reinstatement of President Trump ???
— Monica Crowley (@MonicaCrowley) April 4, 2022
.@ElonMusk is now the largest shareholder of Twitter.
Time to get this platform back to its former glory.
Step one – bring back President Trump!
Step two – give everyone who has been banned a second chance.
Step three – end all forms of political and other censorship.
— Errol Webber (@ErrolWebber) April 4, 2022
In an Op-Ed in The Washington Post, former Fortune executive editor Adam Lashinsky said Twitter may not be the endgame for Musk.
“Twitter also provides a potential launchpad for bitcoin, another of Musk’s obsessions. He takes bold stands in favor of the cryptocurrency from time to time, and Tesla both holds bitcoin on its balance sheet and at one point accepted bitcoin as a payment method,” he wrote. “Given Twitter’s reach and the way it uses software to connect far-flung users, Musk could see it as the ultimate vehicle to realize a long-held dream of promoting a nongovernmental, global currency.”
Dan Ives, tech analyst as Wedbush Securities, told CNN that, sooner or later, the world will know what Musk has up his sleeve.
“I think he intends to go active and force change at Twitter,” said “This is a shot across the bow at Twitter’s board and management team to start discussions.”
“One way or another, he’s going to change the course of Twitter,” Ives said.
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.
