It now comes as a shock turn of events that Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta, was actually heading for Mar-a-Lago, Florida, just days earlier, on November 27, to meet with President-elect Trump. Privately dining with him made an event for not holding anything against Mr. Zuckerberg in their seriously strained relation for long, while building a direction into the future of innovative America.
The meeting, which went down at Trump’s resort, Mar-a-Lago, took place upon the initiative of Zuckerberg, against whom the President-elect held much ill will. The confab was aimed at dampening several years of tension between the two men so that they could focus on Trump’s economic vision for the country and Meta moving forward, sources said.
The dinner was the occasion when Mark Zuckerberg joined Trump and his team to congratulate him on his recent election victory. A goodwill gesture that underlined the intention of Mark Zuckerberg to get on better terms with the incoming administration.
In the official statement on behalf of Meta, it has been declared a “valuable opportunity to discuss the future of American innovation,” with an underlined note of thanks for having invited it. On his part, Trump’s team declared that Zuckerberg “seemed willing to support” his view of national renewal. To Stephen Miller, the incoming deputy chief of staff for policy to Trump, it was one step on the path to forging unity between Big Tech and his administration.
The meeting marked an end to the tumultuous Zuckerberg-Trump relationship of the recent years. Trump long claimed that Meta suppressed conservative voices and interfered in his bid for re-election in 2020. This tension reached its peak when Meta suspended Trump’s accounts following the January 6 riots at the Capitol, citing posts that praised violent insurrectionists and spread unsubstantiated claims of election fraud.
Meta restored Trump’s accounts in early 2023, which had seemed a signal that a thaw might be at hand. Since then, Zuckerberg has made comments that reflect a more neutral-or even supportive-tone toward Trump. Most notably, he referred to Trump’s reaction to an assassination attempt in July as “badass,” a description that Trump later publicly acknowledged and expressed appreciation for.
Ever since then, the meeting has been constantly viewed by many observers as Zuckerberg’s calculated attempt to put Meta in a good light in view of the Trump administration. If analysts have something to say, that would be a mirror of Meta’s strategy: to sidestep, so to speak, possible challenges and antitrust scrutiny that would eventually reflect Trump’s economic interests.
The meeting also reflects a wider pattern of technology executives reaching out to Trump in an effort to get a read on a new and bewildering political landscape. Other industry leaders at companies such as Google and Apple have similarly reached out to Trump’s team, reflecting the need for managing a government that may now apply tougher oversight to Big Tech.
Any possible cooperation between Meta and the Trump administration may involve aspects related to innovation and economic growth. A few even believe that Meta is going to ask for a starring role in implementing Trump’s program of national renewal, particularly in issues related to technological development and modernization.
The outreach by Zuckerberg to Trump symbolized the changing Big Tech role in American politics. A Mar-a-Lago meeting after years of tension underlined how Meta was trying to recast its relationship with government and learn to work with Trump.
To Trump, the meeting could reinforce his message of building relationships with business leaders to spur national growth. To Meta, it’s a chance to regain trust and secure a position of influence in a climate of increasing political hostility.
