Stories like this raise questions of forgiveness and trust.
According to The Wall Street Journal, Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta Platforms, which owns Facebook and other social media entities, has departed from its traditional practice by donating $1 million to President-elect Donald Trump’s inaugural fund — something it neglected to do for Trump in 2017 or for President Joe Biden in 2021.
The donation represents the latest sign that Zuckerberg, a longtime Trump antagonist, might have warmed to the president-elect.
Or at least the tech mogul hopes to create that perception.
Last month, for instance, Zuckerberg had dinner with the president-elect at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida.
That dinner followed two days of meetings between Meta executives and Trump associates, including incoming White House officials.
By all appearances, Zuckerberg’s pivot toward Trump began prior to the 2024 presidential election.
Shortly before the election, Republican vice presidential nominee J.D. Vance, now the Vice President-elect, appeared on Joe Rogan’s podcast, where the two joked that Zuckerberg had morphed into a closet Trump supporter, perhaps due to martial arts training.
Moreover, Trump’s defiant response to the first assassination attempt against him on July 13 left Zuckerberg in awe.
Do you trust Mark Zuckerberg?
Yes: 0% (0 Votes)
No: 100% (2 Votes)
On the other hand, by donating $420 million to support the proliferation of mail-in ballots four years ago, Zuckerberg helped orchestrate the unprecedented shenanigans that cast serious doubt upon the legitimacy of the 2020 presidential election. Thus, in a book published in August, Trump threatened Zuckerberg with prison should the latter cheat in the 2024 election.
Furthermore, in an August letter to House Judiciary Chairman Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio, the tech mogul admitted “regret” at having caved to President Joe Biden’s administration, which “repeatedly pressured our teams for months to censor certain COVID-19 content.”
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Trump’s nominee for secretary of health and human services, took notice.
“Looks like Mark Zuckerberg has joined the ranks of the crazed conspiracy theorists who claim that the Biden administration pressured Facebook to censor dissent during Covid,” Kennedy wrote in a tone of unmistakable sarcasm on the social media platform X.
Looks like Mark Zuckerberg has joined the ranks of the crazed conspiracy theorists who claim that the Biden administration pressured Facebook to censor dissent during Covid.
— Robert F. Kennedy Jr (@RobertKennedyJr) August 27, 2024
In short, everyone loves a redemption story, so one hopes that Zuckerberg has spoken and acted with sincerity toward Trump.
Likewise, as difficult as it sometimes feels, Christians acknowledge our obligation to forgive.
On the other hand, Trump supporters, many of whom suffered banishment from Zuckerberg’s Facebook, have every reason for bitterness.
Thus, one may forgive, but forgiveness does not necessarily mean trust.
Many Trump supporters on X, including some who boast more than one million followers, have chosen not to trust Zuckerberg.
That group includes investigative journalist Laura Loomer.
“Nobody with a brain buys the lie that Mark Zuckerberg supports President Trump,” Loomer tweeted on Thursday.
“His $1 million donation should be returned. And he should be raided by the new FBI and jailed for stealing the election and murdering people with his mass censorship campaigns,” she added.
Nobody with a brain buys the lie that Mark Zuckerberg supports President Trump.
His $1 million donation should be returned. And he should be raided by the new FBI and jailed for stealing the election and murdering people with his mass censorship campaigns.
— Laura Loomer (@LauraLoomer) December 12, 2024
Comedian and children’s book author Terrence K. Williams accused Zuckerberg of “trying to buy his way out of Prison!”
“Lock him up,” Williams wrote.
Mark Zuckerberg donated 1 million to Trumps Inaugural Fund
He’s trying to buy his way out of Prison!
Lock him up
— Terrence K. Williams (@w_terrence) December 12, 2024
Finally, Ashley St. Clair argued that Zuckerberg cares only about power.
“His creation of one of the largest censorship algorithms reflects that, as does his recent pivot sensing a shift in the power axis. It is beyond foolish to trust him,” she wrote.
In short, Christians must let go of resentment toward Zuckerberg, and others should do likewise.
Nonetheless, the tech mogul, reportedly worth more than $200 billion, will have to do a lot more than donate a comparatively paltry $1 million to an inaugural fund before he can even dream of finding his way into Trump supporters’ good graces.
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