Elon Musk and Trump administration officials issued blistering criticism of the European Union after the executive branch imposed a $140 million fine on its social media platform X.
“The EU must be abolished and sovereignty returned to individual countries so that governments can better represent their people.” Musk wrote about X on Saturday, before adding: “AbolishTheEU.”
The European Commission said on Friday that it has fined X for “failure to comply with transparency obligations” under the Digital Services Act (DSA), adding that it specifically held The commission placed the $140 million fine on X.
Elon Musk, Vice President JD Vance (center) and Secretary of State Marco Rubio (right) condemned the EU’s $140 million fine against X. (Nathan Howard/Reuters; Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images; Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images/Getty Images)
Friday was in response to a X message from Senator Ted Cruz, R-Texas calls the fine an “abomination” and says President Donald Trump should impose sanctions “until this travesty is undone.” Musk replied: “The ‘EU’ has imposed this insane fine not only on X, but also on me personally, which is even more insane!”
“Therefore, it seems appropriate to apply our response not only to the EU, but also to the individuals who took this action against me,” Musk wrote. mention the fine in another post “bulls—.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on X that the fine “is not just an attack on X, it is an attack on all American technology platforms and the American people by foreign governments.”
Before the fine was announced, Vice President J.D. Vance said: “The EU should support freedom of expression and not attack American companies over waste.”
The EU adopted the DSA in 2022 to regulate online platforms such as social networks and “prevent illegal and harmful online activities and the spread of disinformation,” but the law has since faced opposition from the EU. Trump administration amid the promotion of freedom of expression on the world stage.
Thomas Reigner, spokesperson for Tech Sovereignty, Defense, Space and Research at the committee, argued during a briefing Friday that the fine was not related to content moderation.
US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick is among Trump administration officials speaking out against the fine imposed on X. (Dursun Aydemir/Anadolu via Getty Images/Getty Images)
“Today’s decision has nothing to do with content moderation,” Reigner said. “These are transparency provisions for citizens here in the European Union.”
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Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick said on X that “the Digital Services Act is intended to stifle free speech and American technology companies,” and: “We have made our position clear to our counterparts in Europe.”
“Foreign bureaucrats have zero right to tell Americans what they can and cannot say.” added Senator Eric Schmitt, R-Mo.
‘Europe again fines a successful American technology company because it is a successful American technology company’ said Federal Communication Commission (FCC) Chairman Brendan Carr. “Europe taxes Americans to subsidize a continent stymied by Europe’s own stifling regulations.”
Elon Musk during a press conference with President Donald Trump, not pictured, in the Oval Office of the White House on Friday, May 30, 2025. (Francis Chung/Politico/Bloomberg via Getty Images/Getty Images)
Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., said, “America is done looking the other way while foreign governments try to censor our people and bully our businesses.”
The European Commission further explained its reasoning in a press release.
“X’s use of the ‘blue check mark’ for ‘verified accounts’ deceives users,” the commission said in a statement. “On This deception exposes users to scams, including impersonation fraud, and other forms of manipulation by malicious actors.”
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“X’s ad repository does not meet the DSA’s transparency and accessibility requirements. Accessible and searchable ad repositories are critical for researchers and civil society to detect scams, hybrid threat campaigns, coordinated information operations and fake ads,” the report said.
