Meta owner, Mark Zuckerberg has dedicated $1 million to the inauguration funds of United States President-elect Donald Trump. Following the election, the tech giant’s boss, had earlier in November dined with Trump in what seems to be a relationship repair between his firm and the President-elect.
Trump, who will be sworn in as the 47th US President on January 20 has been highly critical of Facebook and Zuckerberg. Trump claimed that the social media platform was used against him during the 2017 election.
However, this is the first time Meta will donate to US inaugural funds. The company did not make such a donation to President Joe Biden’s inaugural fund in 2020 or to Trump’s previous inaugural fund in 2016.
Inauguration funds pay for events and activities when a new president takes office. It has mostly been associated with the fact that some consider them an attempt to curry favour with a new administration.
Likewise, the donation of funds for inaugural events is backed by the US Federal Election Commission. According to the agency, corporations are permitted to make donations to an inaugural committee and such contributions are not subject to any limits.
A New York Times report also pointed out that donors who contribute $1 million or more will receive between six and eight tickets to several inaugural events scheduled between Jan. 17 and 20. It also includes six tickets to the inauguration on Jan. 20.
In addition, top donors will also be able to attend a reception with Trump’s cabinet nominees and dinner with Vice President-elect JD Vance and his wife Usha Vance on Jan. 18. A day later the top donor will have a chance to dine with Trump himself and his wife Melania. However, it was not clarified if Zuckerberg or any Meta executive will attend these events.
A trend of Trump and Zuckerberg’s tense relationship
The relationship between the two powerhouses has been categorized as a “tense relationship” which soured after Facebook and Instagram suspended Trump’s accounts in 2021. The platform claimed that the former president praised those engaged in violence at the Capitol on 6 January.
In March, Trump tagged Facebook an “enemy of the people”, adding that a TikTok ban in the US would only unfairly benefit Facebook. For the past few months, the US has been working on a law that would see TikTok banned in the US unless sold off by its parent company ByteDance.
In July, Trump attacked Zuckerberg again in a post on his Truth Social platform, where he promised to “pursue Election Fraudsters at levels never seen before, and they will be sent to prison for long periods of time.” Trump ended his post with “ZUCKERBUCKS, be careful!”
On another end, Mark Zuckerberg told the Republican lawmakers in August that he regretted bowing to multiple pressures from the Biden administration to “censor” some Facebook and Instagram content during the coronavirus pandemic.
In a book published in September, Trump warned that Zuckerberg would “spend the rest of his life in prison” if he tried to intervene in the 2024 election through his social media platforms.
Ever since then, the situation between the two looks to have been friendly. Donald Trump told a podcast in October it was “nice” Zuckerberg was “staying out of the election”. He also thanked him for a personal phone call after he faced an assassination attempt.
This has seen Zuckerberg meet with Trump at his Mar-A-Lago residence in Florida. The move was characterized as an effort by the billionaire to mend strained ties with the president-elect. During that time, a Meta spokesperson said Zuckerberg was “grateful for the invitation to join President Trump for dinner and meet with members of his team about the incoming administration.”
Stephen Miller, a close Trump aide who has been picked to serve as his deputy chief of staff for policy, told Fox News that the Meta boss informed Trump during their meeting that “he wants to support the national renewal of America under Trump’s leadership,” and he sees the president-elect as an “agent of change and prosperity.”
Trump’s effect – Elon Musk’s edge over Zuckerberg
Mark Zuckerberg looks far less close to his fellow tech rival, Elon Musk who has been Trump’s “First Buddy” because of his extensive donations to his election campaign.
The flow saw the appointment of Elon Musk as a co-leader of the Department for Government Efficiency (“DOGE”). A role that aims to create a more efficient government, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures, and restructure Federal agencies. The role is set to add more influence to the world’s richest man who donated funds to Trump’s presidential campaign.
Elon Musk to sell off Twitter-related memorabilia for $25 in an online auction next month
Elon Musk, ranked by Forbes as the richest person in the world with the latest valuation of $428 billion, has been benefiting from Trump’s victory. With a government portfolio to his status, the market value of his companies and businesses such as artificial intelligence and cryptocurrency has been favoured with the world witnessing Bitcoin crossing the $100,000 price level for a record mark.
“It’s clear that Elon Musk will have a massive role in the Trump White House with his increasing reach clearly across many federal agencies. We believe the major benefits for Musk and Tesla far outweigh any negatives as this continues to be a ‘poker move for the ages’ by Musk betting on Trump,” equity analyst, Daniel Ives said.
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