Meta’s chief executive has become a more visible presence in Washington since President Trump’s return to office after years of avoiding politics.

Mark Zuckerberg is reportedly buying property in Washington, D.C., fueling speculation about closer ties with Trump. Is Meta’s CEO preparing for a political power move?

In Trump’s first term, Meta quietly introduced a slew of Republican-friendly changes. But led by Joel Kaplan, the company is done playing both sides and is going all-in on MAGA.

Videos posted on social media show Zuckerberg glancing at Sanchez's chest during President Donald Trump's inauguration on Monday.

But what stays with me isn’t the overwrought antipathy between Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg, the tetchy tech titans who, in the summer of 2023, made noises — let’s call them grunts — about demonstrating their reciprocal disdain by squaring off and throwing down on the kind of stage used for Ultimate Fighting Championship events.

Meta and Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg (L) speaks with U.S. Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) during the inauguration of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump in the Rotunda of the U.S. Capitol on January 20, 2025 in Washington, DC. Donald Trump takes office for his second term as the 47th president of the United States.

The wife of Mark Zuckerberg and co-founder of the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative attends the inauguration of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump in Washington, D.C.

Zuckerberg touched on his recent affinity for wearing gold chains during an April 2024 video call with journalist Eva Chen, posted to Instagram. During the conversation, Chen asked Zuckerberg to tell her about his gold chain necklace, saying, "I know there's a story behind it."

Some of President Donald Trump's working-class and middle-class supporters see a lack of emphasis on lowering consumer costs and making daily American life more affordable.

It’s no surprise that enforcement officials more closely aligned with Trump see legal ambiguity at the same time those in deep-blue counties, such as San Francisco, insist there is no legal conflict because the federal courts upheld California’s sanctuary law during Trump’s first term.

As Elon Musk and his billionaire brethren take power in Trump’s second term, the lack of legal guardrails — and the fading power of Big Media — is becoming an existential crisis.