Meta donates £780k to Trump's inauguration amid tensions
Meta, the company that owns Facebook, donated £780,000 to Donald Trump's inaugural fund. According to American media comments, this is another step by Meta's CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, to build good relations with the U.S. president-elect.
The company did not disclose why it made the donation.
According to The Wall Street Journal, Zuckerberg met with Trump at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida at the end of November and congratulated him on winning the presidential election. He also spoke with Marco Rubio, who is expected to serve as Secretary of State in Trump's new administration.
The New York Times notes that donations to inaugural committees, which are not subject to contribution limits, are popular among companies and individuals seeking to gain favour with the new administration, which will hold power for the next four years.
Donors who contribute £780,000–£1,560,000 can attend eight events inaugurating the new presidency, including an intimate dinner with Trump and his wife Melania. They will also receive six tickets to attend the presidential inauguration ceremony in front of the Capitol on 20 January.
Trump's first inaugural committee raised over £83 million between 2016 and 2017. The allocation of these funds was the subject of a federal prosecutor-led investigation into illegal foreign donations. The investigation ended with a 12-year prison sentence for one of the donors.
Trump blocked on social media
Zuckerberg is one of many tech company leaders who recently sought direct relations with Trump. Apple CEO Tim Cook and Google CEO Sundar Pichai also contacted the president-elect.
According to "NYT", relations between Meta, which owns Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, and Trump were previously tense. The newspaper recalled that the company blocked Trump on its platforms when his supporters stormed the Capitol on 6 January 2021. His accounts were later unblocked. The president-elect has been critical of Zuckerberg, claiming that he should be jailed for "conspiring against him" before the 2020 presidential election.
