TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — Twitter is the latest company to see a move-to-Florida courtship attempt by a member of the state’s cabinet.
Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis is pitching Florida’s beach views and weather to Twitter for a new home-base location as the company accepts a $44 billion buyout offer from Elon Musk.
In a recent tweet, Patronis posted a picture of one of Florida’s beaches and tagged both Twitter and Elon Musk, referencing the state’s freedoms and business climate, plus beautiful views, for reasons to move the company to the Sunshine State.
“Hey @elonmusk, this is what Team @Twitter could see [every] evening if your HQ was in the Free State of Florida,” Patronis posted, adding the hashtag #FloridaIsForWinners. Patronis used that hashtag again in a tweet Monday, adding “#BringTwitterHQToFlorida.”
The social media company has been on Florida officials’ minds for more than a week now, as SpaceX and Tesla CEO Musk continues his bid to buy the social media company and take it private. Gov. Ron DeSantis weighed in on the platform’s “censoring” conservative accounts last week, saying Musk was trying to “liberate” the company. The governor weighed in again Monday, tweeting that Musk’s offer is “a good deal for shareholders.”
Patronis is now attempting to woo the social media platform and encourage it to move its company headquarters to Florida. The social media giant is the latest company to earn the CFO’s move-to-Florida attention but it’s not the first.
In the past, Patronis has attempted to lure In-N-Out, Musk’s Tesla, the 2021 Olympics and the New York Stock Exchange to move their bases to Florida.
The burger conversation made it as far as a phone call with the governor before fizzling.
Tesla, however, has scoped out some locations in the state in recent weeks to open up a dealership and repair center, including one spot in St. Petersburg.
Following the news that Musk’s offer to buy Twitter had been accepted by the company, Patronis released a statement.
“This acquisition is both a win for free speech and a win for Florida’s pension system. With Elon now in full control of the company, I will continue my campaign of attracting Twitter to Florida. While I do believe Elon has the right intentions, he will be battling a culture that lives, works and plays in San Francisco, which is the epicenter of wokeness, groupthink and speech codes,” Patronis said. “No doubt, Elon’s pro-freedom sentiments, as well as Twitter’s margins, would benefit with a move to the Sunshine State. We have no income tax, we love freedom, and we believe in public safety. With Elon at the helm, Florida and Twitter would be a match made in heaven.”
