AP Photo/John Raoux, File
Elon Musk seized the @America username on his social media platform, X, and is using the handle to actively promote former President Donald Trump’s Republican presidential bid.
Musk’s move was reported over the weekend by journalist Matt Binder after the billionaire tech mogul appeared on-stage at a Trump rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
Shortly before the rally, a new X account sporting the handle @America emerged, with a bio that reads, “Read @America to understand why I’m supporting Trump for President.”
This handle, now tied to Musk’s pro-Trump Super PAC, America PAC, had been inactive since 2020 and reportedly was in the hands of another user for around 14 years prior to the weekend’s takeover.
The original user account ID is now consigned to the handle @America123_12.
X’s policies allow the company to reclaim usernames, typically for issues like copyright infringement or account inactivity. According to X’s policies an account’s inactivity is linked to whether a user is logged in. An account may be considered inactive if a user has not logged in for over 30 days.
Binder cited sources who said that X took the handle from its original owner, much like how Musk’s company previously commandeered the @X handle in July 2023 after the platform’s rebranding. Gene X. Hwang, the former owner of the @X account, described his experience at the time: “[I] got an email basically saying they are taking it.”
Despite the policy around inactivity, critics have blasted the latest takeover as lacking any company-related justification. They point out that the original @America user had been vocal in their disapproval of Musk’s and Trump’s actions, calling Musk “irresponsible” and Trump’s behavior “anti-American” during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 – when the account last posted.
In a post using the newly acquired handle, Musk’s @America account declared: “There is only one candidate in this race who is on the right side of these issues: Donald J. Trump.”
The incident has fueled accusations that Musk, who once claimed, “For Twitter to deserve public trust, it must be politically neutral,” is now using his platform’s resources to push Musk’s personal and partisan agenda.
