President-elect Donald Trump’s inaugural committee was given a $1 million donation from Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta Platforms.
The Wall Street Journal reported on the stunning donation that was confirmed by the company, calling it a “departure” for Zuckerberg and noting it came on the heels of “an election campaign in which Trump threatened to punish the tech tycoon if he tried to influence the election against him. ”
“Zuckerberg’s efforts to strengthen ties—which began years earlier—included a November dinner with Trump on the patio of his private Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Fla., that focused on general relationship-building,” WSJ reported.
However, before the dinner, Zuckerberg’s team had already reportedly told the inaugural committee of the incoming donation. Neither Zuckerberg nor Meta donated to the inaugural fund after Trump’s 2016 victory or Biden’s 2020 win, according to public records.
“The dinner capped a two-day flurry of meetings for Zuckerberg advisers at Mar-a-Lago. Senior Meta policy executives Joel Kaplan and Kevin Martin and Republican strategist Brian Baker met with incoming White House chief of staff Susie Wiles, according to people familiar with the matter,” the outlet added.
Sen. Marco Rubio, Trump’s nominee for secretary of state, reportedly met with the CEO as did Stephen Miller, Vince Haley, and James Blair.
Before the Mar-a-Lago dinner in November, Zuckerberg reportedly “did a private demonstration for Trump of Meta’s Ray-Ban smart glasses, which he gifted to the president-elect, the people familiar with the discussions said,” WSJ reported.
Facebook suspended Trump’s account in 2021 after the events of January 6. Until that time, the then-president and Zuckerberg had stayed in touch, even meeting in the Oval Office in 2019.
After some tensions that followed Trump’s exit from the White House, the two seemed to be mending relations and Zuckerberg said that Trump’s response to the assassination attempt on his life in July was “one of the most badass things I’ve ever seen in my life.”
“Congratulations to President Trump on a decisive victory,” Zuckerberg wrote on Threads after the election. “We have great opportunities ahead of us as a country. Looking forward to working with you and your administration.”
Social media users had mixed reactions to the report on Zuckerberg’s latest overture to the incoming 47th president.
Judge a man by his actions, not his words… He seems to be on the road to redemption.
— Jefe (@cowboyfan1966) December 12, 2024
Donating some chump change is not going to impress anyone. Removing the conservative censor from his platforms… that would be impressive and a sign of his commitment.
— Rich Harrison (@harrisonre) December 12, 2024
He spent some 400M for getting Biden elected in 2020.
— Tonu Lukk (@Tonulukk) December 12, 2024
Didn’t expect to hear Mark Zuckerberg would donate $1M to Trump’s inaugural committee…
h/t @cb_doge pic.twitter.com/AOBWxk4iF9
— @amuse (@amuse) December 12, 2024
A drop in the bucket compared to how much he spent trying to keep him from winning in 2020.
— (@RepuBiker) December 12, 2024
I suspect he wants to be in with whatever side is winning.
— rubberpucky (@rubberpucky) December 12, 2024
Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta Donates $1 Million to Trump’s Inaugural Fund.
Translation: please don’t arrest me for election interference in 2020. pic.twitter.com/SeyuVBSzdQ
— I AM (@i_Beth1) December 12, 2024
Oh? I think he needs guidance and should be given the opportunity to redeem himself. None of us are without fault or regret. Keep an eye but let’s see
— Carolyn Evans (@carolynmrsE62) December 12, 2024
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Originally from New York, Powers graduated from New York University and eventually made her way to sunny South Florida where she has been writing for the BizPacReview team since 2015.
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