Quick Hit:

After nearly two years, former President Donald Trump returned to X, formerly known as Twitter, Monday night for a live interview with the platform’s owner, Elon Musk. The live discussion is expected to be an unscripted and wide-ranging conversation, with Musk inviting users to submit their questions.

Key Details:

• The live interview was scheduled for 8 p.m. Eastern Time on Monday, but has faced a brief delay due to a suspected DDOS attack.

• Musk tweeted about twenty minutes after the interview was due to start, saying, "There appears to be a massive DDOS attack on X. Working on shutting it down. Worst case, we will proceed with a smaller number of live listeners and post the conversation later."

• The appearance follows Trump's reinstatement on X in November 2022, though he has been largely inactive on the platform, favoring his own Truth Social instead.

Diving Deeper:

Former President Donald Trump made a highly anticipated return to X Monday night for a live, unscripted conversation with Elon Musk. The event however faced a brief delay due to a suspected DDOS attack, with Musk tweeting, "There appears to be a massive DDOS attack on X. Working on shutting it down. Worst case, we will proceed with a smaller number of live listeners and post the conversation later." Despite the disruption, the conversation is expected to proceed, with Musk inviting users to submit their questions for Trump.

The event is a crucial moment for both Trump and X. Since his reinstatement on the platform in November 2022, Trump has remained primarily active on his own platform, Truth Social, until now. The interview, initially scheduled for 8 p.m. Eastern Time, is set to be an open conversation with no restrictions on the topics discussed.

The event has also drawn international attention, with European Union officials pressuring Musk to censor the live discussion due to concerns over "harmful content." The move was criticized by Musk and X executives as an overreach, raising concerns about foreign influence on U.S. political discourse.

With Musk's X account boasting over 193 million followers and Trump’s X account holding 88 million followers, this interview is expected to draw a massive audience, far surpassing Trump’s reach on Truth Social. This event not only marks Trump’s return to X but also highlights the platform’s growing role in shaping political narratives ahead of the 2024 election.