A federal judge has questioned if Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s intentions in refusing prosecutors’ access to Donald Trump’s account data on Twitter was an effort to “cozy up” to former President Donald Trump. The comments were made at a hearing for a warrant to search Trump’s Twitter account.
The court transcript was recently made public by Politico from the hearing on February 7 where U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell questioned Twitter’s legal counsel over how they handled the search warrant obtained by special counsel Jack Smith. The data from the former president’s personal Twitter account, @realDonaldTrump, had to be retrieved to fulfill the search warrant, which was acquired as part of an investigation into Trump’s attempts to rig the 2020 presidential election.
After acquiring Twitter in late 2022, Musk reactivated Trump’s account, which had been suspended following the Capitol incident on January 6th. Musk’s goals and possible alignment with Trump’s political ambitions were questioned in light of the action.
Twitter’s legal team insisted repeatedly that Trump must be informed of the search warrant to protect his constitutional rights. The judge specifically questioned whether the motivation behind this persistence was to maintain a positive relationship with the former president. “Is it because the CEO wants to cozy up with the former president, and that’s why you are here?” asked Judge Howell.
Twitter’s defense cited executive privilege and constitutional protections as justifications for why they weren’t completely complying with the order. As they discussed the First Amendment, executive privilege, and the parameters of the warrant, the court and Twitter’s attorneys engaged in an intense discussion, per CNBC .
Judge Howell once questioned whether Twitter’s actions were an effort to make up for suspending Trump’s account during the Capitol riot. She questioned, “Is this to make Donald Trump feel like he is a particularly welcomed, new, renewed user of Twitter here?”
But that’s just the start. The documents show Twitter mounted an unprecedented effort to impede the search warrant by notifying Trump — prompting an incredulous Judge Beryl Howell to wonder if Elon Musk was trying to “cozy up” to him. https://t.co/vdhI6YrskP pic.twitter.com/mVlasM13bO
— Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney) August 16, 2023
Twitter’s attorney, George Varghese, responded to these inquiries by stating that the company’s major concern was defending its constitutional rights. He claimed that their acts were not motivated by politics or favor-seeking, but rather by legal reasons. Twitter’s team said it has “no interest other than litigating its constitutional rights.”
Following months of legal wrangling, Twitter was finally found in contempt of court and fined $350,000 for failing to comply with the search request. Executive privilege was cited as a defense, but Twitter eventually gave Smith’s team the information on February 9 despite the claims.
Howell emphasized Twitter’s limited understanding of the warrant’s supporting documentation and potential dangers in informing Trump. Prosecutors emphasized their concerns, backed by evidence, that notifying Trump may jeopardize the probe.
According to Gregory Bernstein, a member of the special counsel team, “There are concrete cognizable reasons to think that if the former president had notice of these covert investigative steps, there would be actual harm and concern for the investigation, for the witnesses going forward.”
Trump was charged with conspiracy to defraud the United States, obstructing official business, and conspiring against rights in indictments Smith released on August 1. The trial for this matter has been scheduled for January 2, 2024, as announced by federal prosecutors. Trump is already facing three more indictments for crimes including corporate fraud, unlawful retention of classified information, and attempting to rig the Georgia 2020 election, per the New York Post .