For the longest time, leftists who’d gnashed their teeth at the thought of Elon Musk having turned Twitter, now X, into a global free-speech marketplace could at least take solace in knowing that he’d lost a fortune in doing so.

Those days are over. A recent Financial Times article bore the “bad” news:

Social media site X’s valuation has soared back to $44 billion, underscoring the sharp turnaround in the company’s fortunes since its owner Elon Musk assumed the role of staunch ally to President Donald Trump. Investors valued the platform at $44 billion in a so-called secondary deal earlier this month, in which they exchange existing stakes in the company, according to two people with knowledge of the matter.

As Musk himself might say, “Let that sink in.”

If that $44 billion number sounds familiar, it’s because that’s what Musk paid for the platform back in 2022. At the time, critics chortled about the exorbitant purchase price, calling Twitter “an embarrassing, grotesque, vicious, money-losing social-media company.” Furthermore, they predicted that conservatives who hoped Musk could unscrew the place — which, after all, was located in hard-left, drug-addled, poop-patrolled San Francisco — “will be disappointed.”

Wrong and wrong. Musk has indeed remade Twitter into what he dubbed “the digital town square where matters vital to the future of humanity are debated.” It came at a cost, though. The initial changes Musk made to Twitter — such as loosening up the platform’s speech standards, getting rid of most of its sniveling leftist workforce, and the creation of a “premium” subscription service and a blue checkmark for identity verification — were met with opprobrium from Democrats and the mainstream media, but we repeat ourselves. More importantly, those moves were met with an exodus of weak and woke corporate advertisers, often at the behest of leftist pressure groups. And when advertising dries up, so does a vital revenue stream.

That’s no longer the case, though. As the Financial Times adds, “Groups such as Amazon have boosted marketing spending recently as Musk’s relationship with Trump has deepened.”

Musk isn’t letting go of the advertising boycott, though. Indeed, he’s taking legal action. “X recently added a number of brands, including Nestlé, Lego, Pinterest and Shell, to a lawsuit alleging the companies had previously illegally boycotted the platform,” the Financial Times adds. “Beyond advertising, X is expanding its efforts to diversify into new revenue streams and become what Musk has dubbed ‘the everything app.’ Chief executive Linda Yaccarino announced in January that the company would later this year launch X Money, a digital wallet and peer-to-peer payment service, with Visa as its first partner.”

As for the original purchase price, Musk made clear how he viewed it long ago when he said that $44 billion wasn’t the cost of Twitter but rather the cost of free speech.

X’s recovery must be welcome news for Musk, given the unprecedented political attacks his Tesla enterprise is currently undergoing. As we noted recently, Tesla’s stock price is now down 45% from its December post-election peak, and Tesla dealerships, charging stations, and owners are being targeted in lawless “protests” nationwide.

“What is it like,” asked podcaster Joe Rogan, “to buy a company for $44 billion and then people call you a Nazi on that same thing that you bought?” To which Musk replied, tongue in cheek: “I did Nazi it coming.”

Outside the usual leftist enclaves, we suspect those tired “Nazi” smears are falling on deaf ears. Otherwise, Musk wouldn’t have 220 million X followers of his own — which is not too shabby an entourage for a guy who, next to Donald Trump, must be the most hated man in America.

In any case, it’s good to see that Musk’s massive investment in free speech is paying off — even if the man’s net worth is down a staggering $100 billion this year.

You’re welcome, America.