Trump signed the tweet with his initials "DJT" which is unusual in his posts
Afrasianet - Muhammad Sanajleh - In a brief tweet posted on his platform Truth Social, US President Donald Trump wrote, "This is the time to buy!! DJIT.
The sentence was short, but it was enough to provoke an earthquake in the financial markets, especially since it was hours earlier than a surprise announcement of a temporary suspension of the new tariffs for 90 days.
Was it just a coincidence? Or is it beyond that to suspicions of deliberate manipulation?
Suspicious timing and huge gains
The tweet was posted on Wednesday morning, and as evening fell, Trump announced the suspension of tariffs on most countries (except China).
But the markets did not wait long, it was:
• S&P 500 jumped 9%
• The Nasdaq technical index rose by 12%, followed by global markets:
• Japan's Nikkei 225 up 9%
• Britain's FTSE 100 up 4% in Thursday's early trading
Was Trump's tweet used to influence the market thoughtfully?
It is noteworthy that Trump signed the tweet with his initials DJT, which is unusual in his posts, but these letters are precisely the share symbol of "Trump Media and Technology Company", which owns the "Truth Social" platform.
Was there a hidden message in it?
The Guardian report indicated that the company's stock jumped 22% on the same day, prompting many to ask a legitimate question: Was the tweet used to influence the market in a thoughtful way?
Political criticism and calls for investigation
Suspicions soon turned into political action, with Democratic lawmakers and ethics experts calling for a formal investigation.
A joint letter from Senators Adam Schiff and Robin Gallego reached the White House demanding "an urgent investigation into the possible use of insider information," in a move some have described as an attempt to open a possible corruption file in the highest executive branch.
Senator Chris Murphy wrote on the X platform: "An insider trading scandal looms ... Trump's tweet at 9:30 a.m. indicates his intention to give his followers a financial advantage via private information."
Elizabeth Warren called it "clear corruption," while Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez demanded disclosure of all shares bought by members of Congress in the last 24 hours. We'll find out a few things soon. It's time to ban insider trading."
Lawyers warn. Unethical behavior
Richard Painter, a former ethics adviser in the George W. Bush administration, told NPR, "Presidents or senior officials cannot be allowed to comment on and influence the market while making critical policy decisions."
"If anyone from the Bush administration had published a similar post, they would have been fired the same day."
"This scenario could expose the president to accusations of involvement in market manipulation," Pinter said.
Pinter said the incident could lead to investigations "into who knew what and when before (Trump) announced he would delay tariffs on all countries except China."
A Justice Department spokesman declined to comment, and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission did not immediately respond to a request for comment, according to NBC News.
This statement opens the door again to a long debate about the limits of executive moral responsibility, and whether current laws are sufficient to prevent the abuse of economic influence.
Trump justifies and the White House is trying to contain the crisis
Asked Wednesday night about the timing of the tweet, Trump simply said, "I've been thinking about it for the last few days."
White House sources described the decision to suspend the tariffs as part of a pre-thought-out strategy
But sources inside the White House described the decision as part of a pre-conceived strategy, and spokeswoman Caroline Levitt stressed that what happened was part of the "art of the deal."
Other suspicious activity in Congress
Amid the controversy, Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Green revealed that she bought shares in Apple and Amazon on the third and fourth of April, that is, after Trump announced his tariffs.
According to the Guardian, shares of Amazon rose by 12% and Apple by 15% after the suspension of fees.
Did these purchases coincide with advance information?
While the public awaits what the investigation might uncover, Trump's tweet "Buy Now" remains a symbol of a larger crisis of intertwining money, politics and personal interests.
The tweet raised questions not only about market manipulation, but whether U.S. markets are now managed by individual signals from the president himself.
If internal deliberation is proven, the issue could turn from a "political controversy" into a crisis of integrity that will shake the foundations of the American state.