The thread, seen more than a million times in a few hours, argued that the fine targeted X for “defending free speech”. Laced with sarcasm and outrage, the Republicans in the US House of Representatives targeted the EU’s justification of the mega-fine. Republicans said the EU wanted to penalise innovation and punish X for differing from other Big Tech platforms. The EC found X had not provided sufficiently free, unrestricted and timely access to public data for qualified researchers studying systemic risks. Beyond the fines, the EC’s decision requires X to submit remedial action plans including interface redesigns, improved data access, and audits.