Jonathan Stempel

NEW YORK, Reuters – Elon Musk compared himself Tuesday to Eminem when he sought to renegotiate his 2018 deal with the U.S. Securities regulator that required the Tesla Inc Chief Executive to get preapproval before he could tweet.

Musk filed in Manhattan federal court to renew his efforts to stop a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission subpoena asking for information on Tesla and Tesla’s compliance with the consent decree.

Musk’s tweet on Nov. 6, 2021 asking followers to vote for 10% in Tesla shares, as a way of covering tax and stock option bills, has been investigated by SEC. Musk has sold approximately $16.4 billion worth of shares in Tesla since then.

Musk claimed Tuesday that requiring Tesla lawyers for the review of some tweets was unconstitutional and violated the First Amendment.

Musk stated, using Eminem’s song “Without Me” as a quote: “The (SEC), won’t allow me to be or let me become me so let’s see; They tried o shut me down.”

Eminem’s lyrics referenced the Federal Communications Commission. They had penalized radio stations for playing “The Real Slim Shady,” an Eminem track whose content they deemed to be offensive.

Musk claimed that the SEC had issued its subpoenas in bad faith and was unable to pursue any “fishing expeditions” to harass Musk.

The SEC refused to comment.

The 2018 agreement should have Musk’s tweets analyzed. Musk is not exempted from any scrutiny.

This agreement was prompted by Musk’s August 7, 2018 tweet that he had secured funding to take Tesla private. Musk stated Tuesday that the tweet was true.

Alison Nathan (U.S. district judge) is currently overseeing this case. Last week, she was approved by the U.S. Senate to be a federal appellate judge. She may also continue to preside over existing cases.

SEC v Musk. U.S. District Court Southern District of New York. 18-08865.