Janet Yellen Disagrees With Biden That Investigation of Twitter Purchase Is Worth It
(ConservativeHub.com) – President Biden has suggested that the government should look into Elon Musk’s purchase of Twitter. The reasoning may relate to foreign investors who arranged financing to cover the $44 billion price tag. Still, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has said it’s unlikely an inquiry will come out of the situation because there’s nothing to investigate.
Biden’s Comments
During a November 9 press conference, Bloomberg reporter Jenny Leonard asked the president if he felt Elon Musk posed a security threat. She pressed whether he thought it would be a good idea to use government resources to investigate his Twitter purchase because of the involvement of foreign entities.
Biden responded that the billionaire technologist’s cooperation and technical relationships with foreign countries were “worthy of being looked at.” The president was careful to indicate he wasn’t accusing Musk of wrongdoing.
The reporter pressed about how that might happen. The president simply replied, “There’s a lot of ways,” before moving on to someone else in the press corp.
The Financing of Twitter
Reuters looked into how Musk financed the purchase of the social media giant. While he may be the wealthiest man in the world, much of his wealth is in his companies, Tesla and SpaceX. So, he had to get help gathering the full amount.
The investigation revealed Musk drummed up a large portion of the funding by selling stock in his electric vehicle company. He gathered the rest through various investors, including foreign entities.
Banks provided $13 billion. Those getting in on the deal included major players in the financial market, Bank of America, Morgan Stanley, and Barclays. It also included institutions from France and Japan, BNP Paribas, Mizuho Bank, MUFG Bank, and Societe Generale.
Additionally, he took money from private investors, including Saudi Prince Al Waleed bin Talal Al Saud and Qatar Holding.
Yellen’s Response
In a November 15 CBS News interview, Yellen stated an investigation of the purchase of Twitter or the man behind the deal would probably never occur. She made it clear that as far as she knows, there is “no basis” upon which to inquire into the situation.
For Musk, this is good news. Yellen can put a hold on the transaction if she feels something is worth investigating.
Twitter’s Future
Despite sidestepping a possible government probe, Musk still isn’t in good shape with the purchase. He’s made significant moves at the company, including immediately firing the CEO, CFO, and policy chief and laying off about half of the employees. He also stopped remote work and started reinstating banned or suspended accounts.
The upheaval has harmed the company. It is on shaky ground with advertisers after many pulled away from the platform due to concerns over Musk’s management.
During a phone call with employees on November 10, the Twitter owner revealed bankruptcy could be in the company’s future. He said they must figure out how to boost revenue to survive.
On November 17, seven Democrats also reached out to the FTC, accusing Twitter of “willful disregard for the safety and security of its users” and calling for an investigation.
Copyright 2022, ConservativeHub.com
