Sen. Ed Markey of Massachusetts is hopping mad at Twitter owner and CEO Elon Musk, and has threatened to take congressional action against Twitter and other Musk-owned companies, after someone set up a “verified account” on Twitter that impersonated the aging Democrat senator. Markey wrote Musk a letter demanding to know how the fake account got through the verification system known as “blue check.”
“A @washingtonpost reporter was able to create a verified account impersonating me—I’m asking for answers from @elonmusk who is putting profits over people and his debt over stopping disinformation,” Markey wrote on Twitter Sunday afternoon. “Twitter must explain how this happened and how to prevent it from happening again.”
“I’m asking for answers from [Elon Musk] who is putting profits over people and his debt over stopping disinformation,” Markey had tweeted on Friday.
As it turns out, Markey had given permission to the Washington Post reporter to set up the fake account. But we digress.
Musk’s response on Twitter was snarky: “Perhaps it is because your real account sounds like a parody?”
The tweet-fight continued, with Markey writing Sunday afternoon his retaliatory message: “One of your companies is under an FTC consent decree. Auto safety watchdog NHTSA is investigating another for killing people. And you’re spending your time picking fights online. Fix your companies. Or Congress will.”
It almost sounds like a government official’s threat against Musk’s right of free speech. Some may see it as an abuse of power.
Democrats are unhappy with Musk, who has turned more conservative in the past few years. Congress has subpoenaed Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg to answer questions about its practices, and now may turn its attention to Musk. Now, with the Senate in Democrat control, Markey could use his powers to hold governmental hearings to embarrass Musk, reveal corporate practices and company policies, and interfere in the free market. Markey sits on the Commerce, Science, and Transportation committee, where is assigned to the Subcommittee on Consumer Protection, Product Safety, and Data Security and the Subcommittee on Communications, Media, and Broadband.
Markey has served as U.S. senator from Massachusetts since 2013. He was the congressional representative for Massachusetts’s 7th congressional district from 1976 to 2013.
The left has been saying out loud they want to “investigate” Musk. Nothing like rank intimidation from the banana republic of America.
I actually hope they do. Musk will run rings around them. More, he’ll expose them (both sides) for the clueless baboons they are.
No one gets to be the richest man on Earth without being smarter than most (Congress is ragingly stupid) and not knowing where “bodies are buried”.
Plus he has zero Fs to give. He could burn the west down tomorrow and sleep like a baby. He could also nuke the electric car industry overnight.
Odds are far better he would “fix” Congress than Congress “fix” him.
Elon musk is doing something right! Pissing the Gud old boys off! I’m with him!
Go Elon give the politicians all you can. They are a bunch of bully’s right now pushing all their crap down everybody’s throat.
But no investigation of the Marxists over at Google?
That’s weird.
The government doesn’t have any authorization or authority to step in and do anything to a private company. Capitalism is a free enterprise. Musk is at bankrupt and pleading for help like Chrysler did. Social media was always screwed up when they were violating the first amendment rights of Americans. They’ve been wanting to investigate musk for a long time, but on the other hand they pay him tons of money for being a major contractor in the space program. They actually have a security clearance on all those spy and space weapons we’ve been sending up in violation of treaty. They’re not going to do anything this guy is just honking his horn.
Yet they overstep their authority constantly.
This is a post constitutional country with a taste for oligarchy. Especially after the GOP conducted the greatest act of political malpractice I’ve ever seen…nothing to stop them.
This is what happens when politicians think they’re the ones in charge.
It’s long past due to remind elected officials they work for the people, not the other way around.
We need to bring back tar and feathering.
Stolen identity isn’t reserved to Twitter. As a retired federal employee, my employment information has been stolen from federal control. I’m on constant alert for scammers coming at me by mail, email, internet, text, phone, and every other way imaginable from all over Earth. I suggest Senator Markey might focus on that instead of a social media app which one doesn’t even need to be on…….unless you falsely imagine that somebody actually gives a turd what you think.
Markey is wading into a battle of wits unarmed. Cheers –
I suspect you are thinking wit “is a natural aptitude for using words and ideas in a quick and inventive way to create humor.”
What Markey is speaking to has little to do with humor IMO. And when/if the FTC fines start being handed out, we’ll see if Musk is still his witty self. Heheh!
Lies are coming out when Congress said they could not do anything against big Tech not all of sudden they want to step in know that a company may be more center than Left. Congress is a joke they should be disbanned and replaced with a citizen lead government and get out of all business except border security and National Defense.
Elon invested $44B in a $4B business. Elon has shown to date he does not need the US Government to crash and burn Twitter
Paraphrased: If we can ‘fix’ multiple elections in a row, we can damn sure ‘fix’ your companies, and we are done pretending to be bashful about it…
Give ’em hell Elon!
This is what Communists do.
I thought it was only the Republicans, and especially Trump that were going to strongarm and repress businesses and free speech.
What happened?
A Republic is when the Gov’t fears the people. Communism is when the people fear the government.
We don’t have a true republic, haven’t one for over one hundred years. Individual state and local power are overshadowed more and more every day by un-constitutional mandates.
We’re evolving into the founding fathers’ greatest fears, direct democracy.
Every direct democracy in history has degenerated into dictatorship. Give it some time, just watch.
Markey is pos who gets up every morning and looks to see who he will threaten that day. Dumb and dumber comes to mind. Perhaps Biden’s long lost twin.
The Congress Shall make no law….. you all know the rest. Too bad Congress does not.
Musk has done a great job with Twitter. I can speak my mind and not get edited or suspended. Its funny how the Dems have turned. Musk was god to them, especially with his electric cars, now they hate him because he’s developed a mind of his own. He isn’t intimidated by them and doesn’t need their money.
… just like Trump was until that day on the escalator.
Markey is a perfect example of the need for term limits.
Senator Markey, fix corrupt and broken Washington D.C. or the people will!
I’m shocked the Communist Party threatened government control of private companies. That’s completely unheard of!
So Orwellian and so Marxist in so many ways. Seriously, one hardly knows where to start.
Free speech=misinformation; according to Karl and Friedrich.
I remember when we reserved the phrase “misinformation” for foreign nation activities.
I suppose that according to that senator, conservatives are foreigners.
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