The Meta CEO complains of “excessive regulation” in Europe and criticizes Joe Biden to earn the president-elect’s sympathy.

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has urged the incoming Donald Trump administration to intervene and prevent the European Union from imposing fines on American tech companies for breaching antitrust rules and committing other violations. Comparing the EU's actions to tariffs, Zuckerberg argued that Brussels is "messing with" U.S. industries and undermining their global competitiveness.

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Speaking on The Joe Rogan Experience podcast on 11 January, Zuckerberg emphasized the strategic importance of American tech firms, saying, "I think it's a strategic advantage for the United States that we have a lot of the strongest companies in the world, and I think it should be part of the U.S. strategy going forward to defend that."

Speaking of President-elect Trump, he added, "I think he just wants America to win."

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Zuckerberg criticized the E.U.

for levying over $30 billion in penalties against U.S. tech companies over the past two decades, including a €797 million fine on Meta last year for breaching E.U. antitrust rules. He described the European Commission’s enforcement as "almost like a tariff" targeting American firms – a formulation that appeals to Trump.

He also accused the outgoing Biden administration of “failing to defend” U.S. tech giants, claiming that it "led the attack" on these companies and allowed the E.U. to impose penalties unchecked – another statement intended to earn Trump’s sympathy.

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Zuckerberg’s remarks came shortly after Meta announced it would end its third-party fact-checking program and shift to a "community notes" model. The move has been seen by many as an effort to align with the incoming administration, which has criticized content moderation as politically biased censorship.

Meta also revealed plans to discontinue its diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, citing a shift in the "legal and policy landscape."

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Last year, Donald Trump publicly accused Zuckerberg of election interference four years ago. In his book Save America, published in September 2024, Trump alleged that the Meta CEO had "plotted" against him during the campaign in 2020 and warned that any illegal activities in future elections could result in life imprisonment.

Zuckerberg was also slammed by Trump for suspending his Facebook account over the spread of falsehoods.

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