Elon Musk fires Twitter lawyer who was key figure at FBI during Russia investigation
Podcast host Janelle King joined 'Fox & Friends First' to discuss Elon Musk exposing Twitter censorship, the GOP pushing to ban TikTok and Raphael Warnock winning re-election in Georgia.
Twitter head Elon Musk informed his predecessor Jack Dorsey on Wednesday that some of the "most important data" was kept hidden from him and suggested that some "may have been deleted."
Musk fired Twitter's deputy general counsel Jim Baker on Tuesday after it was brought to his attention that Baker had vetted the first installment of the so-called "Twitter Files" shared by Substack journalist Matt Taibbi last week without his knowledge.
Baker's involvement in curating files relevant to Twitter's suppression of the Hunter Biden laptop story sparked a firestorm on the platform, particularly since Baker formerly served as the FBI's general counsel during the Russian collusion investigation.
That prompted Dorsey, who stepped down as Twitter's CEO last year and left its board of directors in May, to call for full transparency with the release of the "Twitter Files."
Jack Dorsey, creator, co-founder and chairman of Twitter and co-founder and CEO of Square, appears on stage at the Bitcoin 2021 Convention, a crypto-currency conference held at the Mana Convention Center in Miami, Florida, on June 4, 2021. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
"If the goal is transparency to build trust, why not just release everything without filter and let people judge for themselves? Including all discussions around current and future actions? Make everything public now," Dorsey wrote Wednesday.
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"Most important data was hidden (from you too) and some may have been deleted, but everything we find will be released," Musk replied.
It is unclear whether Baker was directly involved in the suppression or deletion of the "Twitter Files."
Musk on Tuesday announced that he had terminated Deputy General Counsel Jim Baker "in light of concerns about Baker’s possible role in suppression of information important to the public dialogue."
And when asked by a Twitter user if Baker was able to explain himself, Musk replied, "His explanation was …unconvincing."
Moments later, Taibbi began his own Twitter thread calling it a "Twitter Files Supplemental."
Former Twitter deputy general counsel and former FBI general counsel Jim Baker. (Ron Sachs/Consolidated News Pictures/Getty Images)
"On Friday, the first installment of the Twitter files was published here. We expected to publish more over the weekend. Many wondered why there was a delay," Taibbi tweeted. "We can now tell you part of the reason why. On Tuesday, Twitter Deputy General Counsel (and former FBI General Counsel) Jim Baker was fired. Among the reasons? Vetting the first batch of 'Twitter Files' – without knowledge of new management."
Taibbi explained, "The process for producing the ‘Twitter Files’ involved delivery to two journalists (Bari Weiss and me) via a lawyer close to new management. However, after the initial batch, things became complicated. Over the weekend, while we both dealt with obstacles to new searches, it was @BariWeiss who discovered that the person in charge of releasing the files was someone named Jim. When she called to ask ‘Jim’s’ last name, the answer came back: ‘Jim Baker.’
"‘My jaw hit the floor,’ says Weiss," Taibbi wrote.
The Substack writer then shared a screenshot of first batch of files both he and Weiss received, which were labeled "Spectra Baker Emails."
"Baker is a controversial figure. He has been something of a Zelig of FBI controversies dating back to 2016, from the Steele Dossier to the Alfa-Server mess. He resigned in 2018 after an investigation into leaks to the press," Taibbi told his followers. "The news that Baker was reviewing the 'Twitter files' surprised everyone involved, to say the least. New Twitter chief Elon Musk acted quickly to 'exit' Baker Tuesday.
"Reporters resumed searches through Twitter Files material – a lot of it – today. The next installment of 'The Twitter Files' will appear @bariweiss. Stay tuned," Taibbi teased.
Weiss later added, "It's been quite a weekend."
Journalist Matt Taibbi revealed the "Twitter Files" revelations one tweet at a time on Friday. (Daniel Zuchnik/WireImage/Getty Images)
Baker did surface in the first installment of the so-called "Twitter Files" shared by Taibbi on Friday night.
While revealing internal discussions about how to explain Twitter's suppression of the Hunter Biden laptop story during the 2020 election, Baker told his colleagues, "I support the conclusion that we need more facts to assess whether the materials were hacked" but added that "it's reasonable for us to assume that they may have been and that caution is warranted."
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Taibbi's original thread similarly revealed that decisions to censor the New York Post's reporting "were made at the highest levels of the company, but without the knowledge of CEO Jack Dorsey, with former head of legal, policy and trust Vijaya Gadde playing a key role."
Additionally, Taibbi initially reported, "Although several sources recalled hearing about a ‘general’ warning from federal law enforcement that summer about possible foreign hacks, there’s no evidence - that I've seen - of any government involvement in the laptop story."
It is unclear whether Baker's involvement in vetting the "Twitter Files" led Taibbi to draw that conclusion and whether Baker omitted files that would have shown the federal government intervening in Twitter's suppression of the Hunter Biden laptop story.
Elon Musk has wasted little time making his mark on Twitter since he took over in October. (Getty Images)
Musk has been vocal about being transparent when it comes to Twitter's past and present actions as to curating content on the platform, including censored content.
Twitter infamously blocked its users from sharing the New York Post's 2020 reporting of Hunter Biden's laptop in tweets and in direct messages.
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At the time, Twitter Safety alleged that the articles were in violation of its "hacked materials policy." Since then, both Dorsey and ex-Twitter safety chief Yoel Roth have admitted the company's actions were a mistake.
Some critics believe the suppression of the Hunter Biden scandal by Big Tech and the media at large was enough to sway the presidential election in favor of his father.