Silicon Valley’s right-wing figures, long isolated in this particularly Democratic region of California, are now uniting around Donald Trump. And Elon Musk’s millions of dollars should help this movement gain momentum.
The multi-billionaire plans, according to the American press, to give 45 million dollars per month to “America PAC”, a “political action committee” to support the Republican’s presidential campaign.
“Super PACs” are legal entities that cannot directly fund a candidate but are allowed to spend freely on advertising or field actions.
A few months ago, Musk had declared that he would not donate to any of the candidates, even though the right-wing orientation of his platform X (ex-Twitter) and his incendiary messages against Democrats and the left left no doubt about his political affinities.
Shortly after Trump’s assassination attempt on Saturday, he made his full support for the Republican official.
Other, lesser-known, tech figures are also opening their purse strings for the former US president.
They are counting on him to promote cryptocurrencies, finance the expansion of defense technologies — with China in its sights — and counter regulators who want to curb corporate buyouts. start-up.
Predominantly male and white, Trump supporters in Silicon Valley are united in their loathing of so-called “woke” ideology, which they say promotes diversity and equality over efficiency and excellence.
“PayPal Mafia”
They rolled out the red carpet for the former head of state at a fundraiser last month, organized by David Sacks, one of the members of the “PayPal mafia”.
This informal group includes Elon Musk, who worked in this company in the late 1990s. start-up became a leader in online payment services.
David Sacks’ generosity also earned him a speech at the Republican National Convention.
“In my hometown of San Francisco, Democratic rule has turned the streets of our beautiful city into a cesspool of crime, homeless encampments and open drug use,” Sacks told delegates.
Another member of the PayPal mafia, Peter Thiel, an ultraconservative of German origin, supported Trump in 2016 and has established himself as the spearhead of the right in tech.
In 2021, after the storming of the Capitol, he assured that he would stay away from politics.
But he then made a major contribution to the Senate campaign of JD Vance, whom Trump chose this week as his running mate.
Chamath Palihapitiya, a former Facebook executive who co-hosts the podcast with Mr. Sacks All-Ina go-to for tech conservatives, also helped organize the fundraiser.
He is known for his passion for “SPACs”, a type of legal vehicle that allows companies to more easily go public, instead of carrying out a formal IPO.
Crypto
The practice was abandoned after the U.S. Federal Reserve raised interest rates, stifling the venture capital industry and sparking anger among many in Silicon Valley over Joe Biden’s economic policies.
Tuesday, the specialized site The Information reported that Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz, who run one of the region’s largest investment funds, also supported Donald Trump.
Their company, which is heavily involved in cryptocurrencies, created a fund last year to wage a sort of political war against legislators who want to regulate this nascent industry, already marked by scandals and bankruptcies.
Crypto billionaires Cameron Winklevoss and Tyler Winklevoss were also in attendance at the June fundraiser.
Once rather hostile to cryptocurrencies, Donald Trump has softened his stance. The former president will “end the Biden administration’s war on cryptocurrencies,” Cameron Winklevoss promised.
Senior executives at Palantir, a data analytics company co-founded by Peter Thiel and Joe Lonsdale that specializes in national security, are also among the Republican endorsers.
“Our country is in a deadlock because these lunatics are in charge,” Joe Lonsdale recently said on CNBC of Democrats.