Senator calls for investigation into Saudi stake in Elon’s Twitter buyout

Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) is demanding a national security review of Elon Musk’s Twitter takeover and the nearly Saudi Arabia: $2 billionFunding for the deal

In a statement issued MondayMurphy called on the Committee on Foreign Investment in the USA (CFIUS), to investigate Saudi investment in Twitter. Musk’s deal, All together, $44 billionThis includes billions of dollars from Chinese and Saudi investors. Saudi Arabia’s Kingdom Holding Company and the private office of Prince Alwaleed bin Talal claimed to be Twitter’s “second largest investors,” with a combined stake worth $1.89 billion.

“We should be concerned that the Saudis, who have a clear interest in repressing political speech and impacting U.S. politics, are now the second-largest owner of a major social media platform,” Murphy said in a Monday tweet. 

The Treasury Department declined to comment.

CFIUS is not known to comment on ongoing investigations but the Treasury Department oversees an interagency panel that is under increasing pressure to examine the deal. On Friday, the American Economic Liberties Project also urged CFIUS and the Federal Communications Commission to look into Musk’s foreign funding in Twitter and his Starlink internet company. 

“Elon Musk’s potential dependencies on the Chinese government are concerning, and the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. should investigate his takeover of Twitter, as should the Federal Communication Commission, considering Musk’s control of Starlink’s satellite internet service,” Sarah Miller, AELP executive director, said in a Friday statement. 

Saudi Arabia’s sovereign-wealth fund has invested billions into US publicly traded companies over the last few years. In the United States, the Saudis have invested approximately $7.5 billion this year in companies such as Amazon and Google. The Wall Street Journal This report was published in August. 

“If this deal goes through, two of the most important U.S. social media platforms will be owned, in whole or in part, by China (TikTok) and Saudi Arabia (Twitter),” Murphy said on Twitter Monday. “This is a dangerous trend, and we don’t have to accept it.”