Sen. Ed Markey (D-Massachusetts) fired back at Elon Musk after being mocked by the billionaire at a Twitter exchange.
Musk made fun of Markey after the senator requested information about Twitter’s new and controversial verification policy.
“One of your companies is under an FTC consent decree. Auto safety watchdog NHTSA is investigating another for killing people,” Markey wrote. “And you’re spending your time picking fights online. Fix your companies. Or Congress will.”
Markey’s comments came after a Washington Post reporter was able to impersonate his profile by creating a Twitter Blue account that grants a verified blue checkmark to anyone who pays $7.99 per month.
After the story was published, the senator — who sits on the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and is part of the subcommittee on consumer protection and data security — filed a letter to Musk asking for information and shared the document on Twitter.
Musk’s responded with a joke:
“Perhaps it is because your real account sounds like a parody?” the billionaire wrote, prompting the senator harsh scolding.
Markey made reference to the several challenges faced by Musk’s companies.
Twitter is under two consent decrees that require several actions by the company to make sure privacy and security issues are addressed.
The senator also pointed out to the investigation conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the top federal auto-safety agency, on Tesla, which is facing lawsuits from families of victims of fatal accidents involving the company’s autopilot system.
