Former President Donald Trump said that he
has no intention of rejoining Twitter even if
his account is reinstated following Elon Musk’s
agreement to buy the social media giant for
roughly $44 billion.
Trump told Fox News that he will instead focus
on his own platform, Truth Social, which has
been mired in problems since its launch earlier
this year.
“I am not going on Twitter. I am going to stay on
Truth,” Trump was quoted telling the network.
“I hope Elon buys Twitter because he’ll make
improvements to it and he is a good man, but I
am going to be staying on Truth.”
Trump was barred from major social media
platforms after the deadly Jan. 6 insurrection,
with Twitter citing the “risk of further incitement
of violence.” The decision denied him the
megaphone he had used to generate media
attention and speak directly to his followers,
which had been integral to his political rise.
At the time, the former president had roughly 89
million followers on Twitter alone.
Musk, the world’s wealthiest person and a self-
described free-speech absolutist, had said he
wanted to buy and privatize Twitter because he
believed it wasn’t living up to its potential as a
free speech platform. It raised questions about
whether he might reinstate Trump’s account as
the former president lays the groundwork for
another White House run in 2024.
Trump has continued to spread lies about his
2020 election defeat in speeches and statements
since leaving office, and it is unclear how Musk
would approach those statements if Trump were
ever to return to the site.