DeSantis calls Apple "a vassal of the CCP"?
On November 29, while in Duval County to announce new infrastructure funding, Florida's Governor Ron DeSantis waded into the recent debate over what has been termed "Corporate Communism" by Georgia Republican Marjorie Taylor-Greene.
DeSantis tackles Apple
DeSantis was commenting on recent protests in China against restrictions placed upon citizens of the country by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), and chose to attack the Apple corporation for restrictions it had placed on Airdrop functionality that was preventing the Chinese people from sharing images from their iPhones.
He further attacked apple for threatening to withdraw the Twitter app from its App Store, something that has recently been discussed following Elon Musk's reinstatement of numerous banned accounts and the subsequent degeneration of debate on the platform.
DeSantis went as far as describing Apple as "a vassal for the CCP" and suggested that if Apple were to ban Twitter from the App Store, the Federal Government should get involved, stating:
"That would be a huge, huge mistake, and it would be a really raw exercise of monopolistic power that I think would merit a response from the United States Congress."
His message seems to conflict with the Republican ideal that corporations should be free to operate with minimal government intervention.
The degeneration of Twitter?
The changing corporate landscape in recent weeks has been most clearly demonstrated by Twitter since it became a private company, led by Elon Musk.
While many advocates of completely free, unrestricted speech including those on the hard-right of the GOP have been delighted by Elon Musk's actions, others are doubtful that his actions are for the best.
Musk reinstated controversial Republicans including Marjorie Taylor-Greene, and Donald Trump as well as Rapper Ye, originally banned for anti-Semitic comments made on the platform.
Corporate Communism?
The topic of so-called "Corporate Communism" has come about most recently due to the decision by many corporations that they no longer want to advertise on Twitter since the platform has changed so radically.
In light of this change, Apple have suggested that they-too may stop advertising on the platform and are also considering pulling the Twitter app from the Apple app store.
The outcome of these corporate arguments is yet to become clear, but it seems that Governor Ron DeSantis' call to escalate the matter to Congress potentially seems heavy handed. Time will tell whether it comes to pass, or is even required.
Do you think that state and federal governments should be so keen to get involved in matters relating to technology firms and their conduct towards each other? Let me know your thoughts in the comments section below.
Comments / 56