Biden officials are considering investigating Elon Musk’s Twitter deal over national security concerns
Elon Musk has suggested the Biden administration could end his Twitter deal after reports officials are discussing launching an investigation into national security concerns.
US officials are reportedly uneasy about Musk’s $44 billion venture with a group of foreign investors to buy the social media platform, sources familiar with the matter told Bloomberg.
There are also concerns over Musk’s recent threat to pull its Starlink satellite service from Ukraine, amid tweets suggesting the country is ceding part of its territory to Russian invaders.
Twitter shares fell 4.67 percent when markets opened Friday, a day after Musk vowed to cut the company’s workforce by 75 percent.
Potential government interference in the deal would be the latest in Musk and Joe Biden’s turbulent relationship, as the two have often snubbed each other.
Musk has criticized the president’s handling of inflation and the economy, and Biden, in turn, has repeatedly failed to mention Tesla as a crucial part of his plan for more electric cars in America’s future, favoring GM and Ford instead.
While Musk, 51, has yet to comment on the possibility of an investigation, he simply laughed at the idea on Twitter that the Biden administration might be the one who could stop him from what he says “paying too much.” ‘ for the social media company.
The cost of the deal would further erode Musk’s fortune as it turns out he’s lost more than $100 billion of his net worth.
The world’s richest man made headlines last November after his fortune rose to $320.3 billion, but nearly a year later, Forbes put Musk’s current value at $209.4 billion, a down of 35 percent equals.
The Biden administration is discussing opening an investigation into Elon Musk’s $44 billion Twitter takeover bid
Musk laughed at the prospect that Biden, with whom he has a tumultuous relationship, might stop him from “overpaying” for Twitter
Twitter’s shares are down more than 4% since Musk announced he will cut staff by 75%
Sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Bloomberg that the government’s discussions are still at an early stage and it’s unclear if they have a solid path to probe Musk’s business ventures.
An investigation could be conducted by the US Committee on Foreign Investments (CFIUS), which reviews acquisitions of American companies by foreign buyers.
The investigation would be triggered because Musk has rallied several foreign investors to help him with the Twitter takeover, including Prince Alwaleed bin Talal of Saudi Arabia; Binance Holdings, a company run by a Chinese; and Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund.
The CFIUS works behind closed doors and does not normally acknowledge when an inspection is conducted.
An investigation into the social media deal could also be the result of a broader investigation into the Starlink incident.
Much of Musk’s net worth decline can be attributed to a tough fiscal year for Tesla, which has seen shares fall more than 30 percent since Musk hit his peak fortune of $320 billion
Last week Musk claimed he could not afford to continue funding Starlink satellites, which have proven vital to Ukraine’s defense against Russia, stoking fears he could cut support.
Starlink terminals have enabled Ukrainian commanders and units to communicate on the battlefield when their usual networks have been shut down by Russia, and have proven vital to the war effort.
They have also helped Ukrainian troops control drones that aid in reconnaissance, attacking enemy tanks and directing artillery fire.
The richest man in the world, with personal wealth in excess of $200 billion, said it costs SpaceX $20 million a month to run the network that powers some 20,000 Starlink terminals in Ukraine, and it is not sustainable.
In October alone, Musk’s fortune fell from $237 billion to $209 billion on Thursday.
Much of the decline in wealth can be attributed to a drop in Tesla shares as investors worry about its deal to buy Twitter by selling shares.
Musk has sold $31 billion worth of Tesla stock, and in a year, the company’s stock has fallen more than 30 percent.
Wedbush analyst Dan Ives told Forbes that the stock will continue to fall as Musk tries to close the Twitter deal.
“The problem for Tesla investors is that Musk is likely to make more stock sales to fund this deal, which we believe will go down in history as one of the worst and most overpaid M&A deals in the history of the market.” will,” said Ives.
Elon Musk, SpaceX’s billionaire owner, says the company can’t continue paying for Starlink terminals to Ukraine, which have proved vital in the war against Russia
Musk threatened to pull Starlink after he tweeted a “peace plan” that prompted an ambassador to tell him to “fuck off” — and joked he’d just “follow”. [the] Recommendation’
Musk slammed the cost of Starlink just days after tweeting a “peace plan” that would see parts of Ukraine’s territory handed over to Russia, prompting a clash with President Zelensky, and saw Ambassador Andrei Melnyk tell him he should “get away”.
Possible interference from the Biden administration would be the latest in a turbulent week for Musk and Twitter, who want to finalize the deal by Oct. 28, according to a Delaware Chancery Court judge’s order.
On Thursday, company documents obtained by The Washington Post revealed that the billionaire told potential investors in its $44 billion deal to buy the social media giant that it plans to shed three-quarters of its 7,500 employees.
That would leave the company with an emergency staffing of just over 2,000 employees, which experts say would make it difficult for the social media company to shut down what it deems “misinformation.”
Now a number of employees are voicing their fears that they could be one of more than 5,000 employees to be laid off at the company if 51-year-old Musk takes over.
The company’s executives had already planned to cut a quarter of its workforce after it spent a whopping $1.5 billion on staffing last year. Twitter staff can be seen here in March
Matt Walker, a product designer for Twitter, meanwhile, hit out at Musk and former CEO Jack Dorsey in a series of tweets Thursday night, writing, “Every decision Jack has made has brought us to this point.”
He also tweeted that the common thread between the news that MailChimp’s CEO wrote in an email that pronouns “do more harm than good” and Musk’s planned layoffs is “Billionaires are holes.”
And in his last tweet, Walker wrote that he was “scrolling fate at the source of doom.”
A financial advisor to the company, meanwhile, asked if anyone was looking after her, while Steph Jeong, a designer, simply tweeted: “Sigh.”
Matt Walker, a product designer for Twitter, meanwhile, lashed out at Musk and former CEO Jack Dorsey in a series of tweets Thursday night, while Steph Jeong, a designer, simply tweeted, “Sigh.”
Musk’s plans would cut far more jobs than Twitter’s current management planned to lose, with massive repercussions.
But it would give Twitter’s leadership a way to save face and avoid announcing layoffs for a quarter of its workforce, which they were already planning to cut costs.
The company spent a whopping $1.5 billion on staffing last year and wanted to reduce that amount by about $800 million.
Management also planned to make major cuts to its infrastructure and get rid of the data centers that keep the site running for more than 200 million users a day.
However, Twitter executives have denied any layoffs, and General Counsel Sean Edgett told employees on Thursday to expect “tons of public rumor and speculation” as the deal nears completion.
“Since the merger agreement went into effect, there are no plans for company-wide layoffs,” he said, according to Bloomberg.
The reported cuts come as Twitter continues to post 266 jobs on LinkedIn
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