{"id":1780618,"date":"2022-12-19T16:58:57","date_gmt":"2022-12-19T21:58:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1780618"},"modified":"2022-12-19T17:04:04","modified_gmt":"2022-12-19T22:04:04","slug":"kathleen-j-anderson-elon-musk-makes-a-point-about-power-that-conservatives-need-to-understand","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/kathleen-j-anderson-elon-musk-makes-a-point-about-power-that-conservatives-need-to-understand\/","title":{"rendered":"Kathleen J. Anderson: Elon Musk Makes a Point About Power That Conservatives Need to Understand"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">30<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fkathleen-j-anderson-elon-musk-makes-a-point-about-power-that-conservatives-need-to-understand%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1780618&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><div><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/2022.12.19-03.57-thepoliticalinsider-63a089f9d7675.jpg\" class=\"ff-og-image-inserted\" alt=\"image\"   style=\"display:none\"><\/div>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">With great power comes great responsibility, and one of the most powerful men in the world at the moment is Elon Musk. But, heavy is the head that wears the crown, and in the last few days, Mr. Musk\u2019s neck has no doubt been worn out by the weight of the Twitter crown he placed upon his head.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">It\u2019s been a wild and exciting ride on the powerful social media platform since Elon purchased the bluebird for a cool $44 billion and set it free to poop on everything the left-wing machine had built over the past few years. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">We have learned so much about how the modern propaganda machine worked. Still, Mr. Musk may be stepping away as Chief Liberator.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">The jet-setting billionaire posted a poll last night that, naturally, I participated in, asking if he should step down as the chief executive. Given the results and his past actions post-polling, Elon may be passing the torch to a new executive. But will he be able to find someone who can be trusted with the helm of the digital town square?<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Those who want power are the ones who least deserve it<\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Elon Musk (@elonmusk) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/elonmusk\/status\/1604650028999405568?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">December 19, 2022<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<h3><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Should He Stay, Or Should He Go?<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Last night Elon Musk asked the Twitterverse if he should step down as the chief executive of Twitter. Over 17 million users voted, and the results point to Elon stepping down, with 57.5% voting that he should go back to his old job making cool cars and putting men on Mars.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Should I step down as head of Twitter? I will abide by the results of this poll.<\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Elon Musk (@elonmusk) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/elonmusk\/status\/1604617643973124097?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">December 18, 2022<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<div id=\"subscribe\" class=\"email-signup inarticle\">\n<h4>Support Conservative Voices!<\/h4>\n<h5><strong>Sign up to receive the latest<\/strong> political news, insight, and commentary delivered directly to your inbox.<\/h5>\n<\/div>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">While there hasn\u2019t been an announcement from Elon Musk saying he is for sure stepping down, the assumption is that he will, as he promised he would abide by the poll results and has in the past honored the results of votes. He often drops the Latin phrase \u2018vox populi, vox die,\u2019 translated as \u2018the voice of the people is the voice of God.\u2019\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Late last week, he took fire for <a href=\"https:\/\/finance.yahoo.com\/news\/elon-musk-asked-twitter-step-112411393.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">suspending the accounts<\/a> of various journalists, including from the New York Times, Washington Post, and CNN, for doxxing his real-time location. After receiving considerable criticism, he polled Twitter asking if he should unsuspend the journalists.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">The majority voted that he should, and sure enough, he followed through with those actions. Many believe that this action and subsequent reaction have Elon Musk second-guessing his position on Twitter and the power it allows him to wield.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Shortly after, he posted his poll asking if he should pass the torch in a nod to one of my favorite philosophers, Plato, who once said, \u201cOnly those who do not seek power are qualified to hold it.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Musk tweeted:<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">\u201cThose who want power are the ones who least deserve it.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><strong>RELATED: <a href=\"https:\/\/thepoliticalinsider.com\/kevin-mccarthy-gop-will-subpoena-51-intel-officials-who-claimed-hunters-laptop-was-russian-disinformation\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Kevin McCarthy: GOP Will Subpoena 51 Intel Officials Who Claimed Hunter\u2019s Laptop Was \u2018Russian Disinformation\u2019<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<h3><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Absolute Power Corrupts Absolutely<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">If there is one important lesson we have learned thanks to Musk\u2019s takeover of Twitter is that Twitter has essentially become an extension of the police state. Recently journalist Matt Taibbi explained in his Twitter files reporting:<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">\u201cTwitter\u2019s contact with the FBI was constant and pervasive, as if it were a subsidiary.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">3. Twitter\u2019s contact with the FBI was constant and pervasive, as if it were a subsidiary.<\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/mtaibbi\/status\/1603857539178848280?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">December 16, 2022<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Mr. Taibbi disclosed that there were over 150 emails exchanged between the FBI and the former Twitter Trust and Security chief over a little over two years. We\u2019ve learned that these exchanges helped to censor the New York Post\u2019s coverage of the Hunter Biden laptop and suspend accounts of mostly conservative-leaning users.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Perhaps the most alarming is that some of the accounts had low engagement levels, which for those unfamiliar with Twitter, means they were accounts of regular men and women who don\u2019t have a follower base that would warrant them influencers like celebrities, political figures, or pundits. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Mr. Taibbi went on to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/policy\/technology\/twitter-files-elon-musk-fbi\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">explain<\/a>:<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">\u201cWhat most people think of as the \u2018deep state\u2019 is really a tangled collaboration of state agencies, private contractors, and (sometimes state-funded) NGOs. The lines become so blurred as to be meaningless.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">So who was really running Twitter? It clearly wasn\u2019t Jack Dorsey, who abdicated his power in the company.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Who did he hand that power to? It would appear the FBI and various other three-letter agencies.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>RELATED: <a href=\"https:\/\/thepoliticalinsider.com\/former-cia-fbi-spooks-found-jobs-at-twitter-doing-what-they-do-best\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Former CIA, FBI Spooks Found Jobs at Twitter, Doing What They Do Best<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<h3><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Taking A Page From <em>1984<\/em><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">The Twitter files have not made the FBI look very good, although they\u2019ve never really had the best look. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">In response to the Twitter revelations, an FBI spokesperson <a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2022\/12\/16\/fbi-treated-twitter-as-subsidiary-flagged-tweets-for-misinformation\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">said<\/a>:<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">\u201cThe FBI regularly engages with private sector entities to provide information specific to identified foreign malign influence actors\u2019 subversive, undeclared, covert, or criminal activities.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">They go on to claim:<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">\u201cPrivate sector entities independently make decisions about what, if any, action they take on their platforms and for their customers after the FBI has notified them.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">But when a preponderance of Twitter leadership are former FBI agents and the FBI can investigate just about anyone and any entity they want, a \u2018request\u2019 seems much more like an order. Republican Congressman James Comer from Kentucky correctly <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2022\/12\/18\/opinions\/twitter-files-elon-musk-fbi-obeidallah\/index.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">describes<\/a> the FBI\u2019s engagement with Twitter:<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">\u201cThe FBI had it\u2019s own ministry of propaganda.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">No need to create a Disinformation Governance Board; embed your agents in critical areas of influence across various industries, and you have your own version of Thought Police.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">The Deep State couldn\u2019t pull off getting an Amendment 25 against Trump so the CIA and FBI controlled social media to ban 45, rig the election for Biden, and quash any dissenting voices. A total coup.<\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Randy Quaid (@RandyRRQuaid) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/RandyRRQuaid\/status\/1604492184623140865?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">December 18, 2022<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<h3><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Careful What You Wish For<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">I think Elon will step down as CEO, but luckily, he will still be the owner. I don\u2019t believe that when he dropped his philosophical tweet, he was referring to himself, but more so a general reminder to the rest of us what power can do to a person and to be suspicious of those who actively pursue it.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Love him or hate him, you can\u2019t deny he\u2019s an intelligent man and very strategic. However, while Musk does enjoy Twitter and is a free-speech absolutist, his first two children really hold his heart \u2013 Tesla and SpaceX.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>RELATED: <a href=\"https:\/\/thepoliticalinsider.com\/elon-musk-twitter-files-prove-censorship-was-enforced-against-the-right-but-not-against-the-left\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Elon Musk: Twitter Files Prove Censorship Was \u2018Enforced Against the Right But Not Against the Left\u2019<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Investment director at AJ Bell, Russ Mould, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/business-your-money-64021412\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">said<\/a> of the possible move away from the Twitter steering wheel:<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">\u201cGiven how much of a distraction Musk\u2019s tenure at Twitter has become, shareholders in the electric vehicle manufacturer will be breathing a big sigh of relief if he steps back from Twitter and gets back to the day job at Tesla.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">This poll is a great self-made door to help Musk exit and focus on the things he loves most, making the world a better place and propelling humanity into outer space. But, of course, finding someone to take his place will be challenging, as he <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vice.com\/en\/article\/pkg9yz\/elon-musk-step-down-as-twitter-ceo\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">tweeted<\/a> last night:<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">\u201cNo one wants the job who can actually keep Twitter alive. There is no successor.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Edward Snowden tweeted:<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">\u201cI take payment in Bitcoin.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">I take payment in Bitcoin. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/wW0Qa9NxWi\">https:\/\/t.co\/wW0Qa9NxWi<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Edward Snowden (@Snowden) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Snowden\/status\/1604628658852970496?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">December 19, 2022<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Now wouldn\u2019t that be something? You can\u2019t deny that Elon Musk is a great man, but as the 19th-century British politician Lord Acton once said:<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">\u201cPower tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span data-preserver-spaces=\"true\">Time will tell which kind of man Elon Musk was and if our wish for a new CEO of Twitter was wise.<\/span><\/p>\n<div>\n<p><strong>Now is the time to support and share the sources you trust.<\/strong><br \/>The Political Insider ranks #3 on <a href=\"https:\/\/blog.feedspot.com\/political_blogs\/\">Feedspot\u2019s<\/a> \u201c100 Best Political Blogs and Websites.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>With great power comes great responsibility, and one of the most powerful men in the world at the moment is Elon Musk. But, heavy is the head that wears<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1780621,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[547],"tags":[6117,5458,4539,4249,5921,4250,5084,3819,10412],"class_list":["post-1780618","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-bongino-report","tag-anderson","tag-bongino","tag-conservatives","tag-elon","tag-kathleen","tag-musk","tag-power","tag-report","tag-understand"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1780618","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1780618"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1780618\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1780621"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1780618"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1780618"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1780618"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}