TLDR
- Tech executives and venture capitalists are donating to America PAC, a super PAC supporting Donald Trump’s presidential campaign.
- Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss each donated $250,000 to America PAC.
- Elon Musk reportedly plans to donate $45 million per month, but this is unconfirmed.
- Other notable donors include Joe Lonsdale, Douglas Leone, and Troy Link.
- Trump has selected crypto-friendly Senator J.D. Vance as his VP pick.
Several prominent figures from the technology and cryptocurrency sectors are throwing their financial support behind Donald Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign. This shift marks a notable change in the traditionally liberal-leaning Silicon Valley landscape.
At the forefront of this movement are Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, co-founders of the cryptocurrency exchange Gemini. According to recent filings with the Federal Election Commission (FEC), each of the Winklevoss twins contributed $250,000 to America PAC, a super political action committee supporting Trump’s campaign.
This donation is in addition to their earlier contributions of $1 million each directly to Trump’s campaign, although a portion was later refunded to comply with legal limits on individual donors.
The Winklevoss twins aren’t the only tech moguls backing Trump. Joe Lonsdale, co-founder of Palantir, has donated $1 million through Lonsdale Enterprises. Douglas Leone, former managing director of Sequoia Capital, and Troy Link, CEO of Jack Link’s Beef Jerky, have also made significant contributions to America PAC.
Perhaps the most talked-about potential donor is Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and SpaceX. The Wall Street Journal reported that Musk plans to donate $45 million per month to America PAC.
However, Musk appeared to deny this claim on social media, calling it “FAKE GNUS.” As of the end of June, Musk’s name does not appear on any of America PAC’s filings.
Despite this, Musk has publicly endorsed Trump following an apparent assassination attempt on the former president, stating,
“I fully endorse President Trump and hope for his rapid recovery.”
The tech industry’s shift towards supporting Trump comes as a surprise to many, given Silicon Valley’s reputation as a Democratic stronghold.
However, President Biden’s policies on corporate taxes and regulations have reportedly pushed some tech leaders to the right. Trump has allegedly promised donors at fundraisers to enact policies in their favor, including cutting corporate taxes and approving oil permits.
In a move that may further appeal to the tech and crypto sectors, Trump has selected Senator J.D. Vance as his vice presidential pick. Vance, a former venture capitalist, has investments in tech and crypto companies and has been favorable to the crypto industry. According to a 2022 financial disclosure, Vance owns between $100,000 and $250,000 in Bitcoin.
This surge of support from tech and crypto leaders comes as Trump’s chances of victory in the U.S. Presidential election have risen to 72% on the decentralized prediction market platform Polymarket. In contrast, President Joe Biden’s odds stand at just 17%.
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