The sudden lurch from Trump to Biden is generating vertigo all over Washington, including the so-called fourth branch of government – chief executives and their army of lobbyists.
After locking down Trump’s account, social media giants like Twitter and Facebook are policing instigators of violence and hate, which hobbles Republican lawmakers trying to appeal to Trump voters.
As a result of moves like these, chief executives are being hailed – and hailing themselves – as guardians of democracy.
So now, in wake of Trump’s calamitous exit and Biden’s ascension, we’re to believe chief executives care about democracy.
When Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg shut Trump’s Facebook account, he declared: “You just can’t have a functioning democracy without a peaceful transition of power.â€.
Look, I’m glad CEOs are penalizing the 147 Republican seditionists and that big tech is starting to police social media content.
But don’t confuse the avowed concerns of these CEOs about democracy with democracy itself.
If they were committed to democracy, CEOs would permanently cease corporate donations to all candidates, close their Pacs, stop giving to secretive “dark money†groups and discourage donations by their executives.
Social media giants would start acting like publishers and take responsibility for what they promulgate.