- Texas lawmaker Tan Parker has urged Elon Musk to move Twitter's HQ to Texas, per Fox News.
- Currently, Musk's Tesla, SpaceX, and the Boring Company all operate in the state.
- Parker said he would "roll out the red carpet" should Musk move to relocate Twitter.
A Texan lawmaker has told Fox News he would "roll out the red carpet" if Elon Musk were to relocate Twitter's headquarters to the state, pending the multi-billionaire's takeover of the social media giant.
Twitter's board of directors has accepted Musk's offer to buy the company outright for $43 billion, but the takeover has yet to be officially approved by shareholders, and faces a host of other regulatory hurdles.
Speaking on Saturday, Texas congressman Tan Parker told Fox News that Musk should "absolutely" consider relocating the company to the state, which is already home to Musk's other firms Tesla, SpaceX, and the Boring Company. Twitter HQ is currently based in San Francisco, California.
Musk quit California for Texas in late 2020, after local COVID-19 restrictions forced Tesla to temporarily close its only US car factory in the San Francisco Bay Area. The electric automaker officially completed its move to Texas in late 2021. The state is also home to SpaceX's Starbase rocket production facility.
"Elon made a tremendous decision, the right choice, when he brought Tesla to Texas, when he brought SpaceX to Texas. I think it's no different in his decision making here for Twitter, he realizes that Texas is the most business friendly state in America, that we are open for business," he said.
Parker added that he would "roll out the red carpet" should Musk make the move. "I believe it's a very good probability that he will bring the headquarters of Twitter," he said.
Musk has been responsible for a hectic few weeks over at Twitter. At the start of April, he bought a 10% stake in the company, automatically becoming its biggest shareholder, for almost $3 billion. Weeks later, his offer to buy the company outright for $44 billion was accepted by the firm's board, prompting despaire among some of its employees.
At a recent TED 2022 conference, Musk said he wanted to acquire the platform because it will be important to the "future of civilization." He said he didn't care about Twitter's econmic value, but wanted to create an "inclusive arena for free speech."
Texas Governor Greg Abbott backed Parker's push for Musk to move Twitter to the state, tweeting: "@elonmusk. Bring Twitter to Texas to join Tesla, SpaceX & the Boring company."