Host Who Dared Elon Musk To Buy Twitter Five Years Ago Says Exchange Still ‘Haunts’ Him
A podcast host named Dave Smith said Monday that an exchange from 2017 with Tesla CEO Elon Musk, daring the tech billionaire to buy Twitter, “continues to haunt” him.
Twitter on Monday announced an agreement to be acquired by Musk for $54.20 per share in a deal valued at $44 billion, The Daily Wire reported.
“I love Twitter,” Musk tweeted on December 21, 2017. “The Refresh” host replied, “You should buy it then.”
You should buy it then
— Dave Smith (@redletterdave) December 21, 2017
“How much is it?” Musk inquired, showing his interest in buying the platform.
A screenshot of the tweet was posted by Smith, but is no longer on Twitter since Musk has deleted all of his tweets preceding April 24, 2022.
“This exchange continues to haunt me,” Smith captioned a screenshot of the full exchange.
This exchange continues to haunt me pic.twitter.com/W06oSqx0MR
— Dave Smith (@redletterdave) April 25, 2022
Musk issued a statement about the deal, emphasizing his commitment to free speech principles.
“Free speech is the bedrock of a functioning democracy, and Twitter is the digital town square where matters vital to the future of humanity are debated,” the 50-year-old said. “I also want to make Twitter better than ever by enhancing the product with new features, making the algorithms open source to increase trust, defeating the spam bots, and authenticating all humans. Twitter has tremendous potential – I look forward to working with the company and the community of users to unlock it.”
Twitter acknowledged the deal in a statement of its own, too. “Under the terms of the agreement, Twitter stockholders will receive $54.20 in cash for each share of Twitter common stock that they own upon closing of the proposed transaction,” the company said. “The purchase price represents a 38% premium to Twitter’s closing stock price on April 1, 2022, which was the last trading day before Mr. Musk disclosed his approximately 9% stake in Twitter.”
Many conservatives championed Musk acquiring Twitter as a win for free speech. Outkick founder Clay Travis, for example, tweeted, “Elon Musk has officially purchased Twitter for $54.20 a share. Absolutely monstrous win for free speech on social media. Feast on the left wing blue check tears as they realize their rigged marketplace of ideas is dying. Glorious.”
On the flip side, some on the Left were outraged by the deal. Actress and “woke” activist Jameela Jamil tweeted, “Ah he got twitter. I would like this to be my what lies here as my last tweet. I fear this free speech bid is going to help this hell platform reach its final form of totally lawless hate, bigotry, and misogyny. Best of luck.”
“One good thing about Elon buying twitter is that I will *FINALLY* leave and stop being a complete menace to society on here,” the actress added. “So it’s win win for you all really.”
Related: Roundup: Who’s Back On Twitter After Musk Buyout, And Who Deleted Their Account
Related: Elon Musk Calls Out Bill Gates In Uncovered Text Messages, Posts Side-By-Side Photo Mocking Gates
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