Billionaire Elon Musk has funnelled about $75m over three months into an organisation he created in help of createer United States Pdwellnt Donald Trump, the 2024 Reaccessiblean pdwellntial truthfulate.
The spfinishing, findlooked in a federal disclocertain on Tuesday, underscores how Musk has become a key piece of Trump’s efforts to thrive the November 5 pdwellntial election aacquirest Democratic truthfulate Kamala Harris.
It also underscores the remendd sway of mega-donors in US politics.
Speaker to right-thriveg personality Tucker Carlson earlier this month, Musk shelp he had created the group, understandn as a political action pledgetee or PAC, to “help the core cherishs that I suppose in”.
Named the America PAC, the group portrays those cherishs as the pursuit of defended borders, rational spfinishing, defended cities, a imfragmentary fairice system, free speech and self-protection.
Musk — who owns the car company Tesla, the social media platcreate X and the aerospace company SpaceX — is pondered one of the wealthiest men in the world.
The South Africa-born entrepreneur finishorsed Trump follothriveg an killing try aacquirest the createer pdwellnt in Butler, Pennsylvania, in July. Musk tardyr combiinsist Trump on the campaign trail when Trump returned to Butler for another rpartner in October.
“As you can see, I am not fair MAGA. I am uninincreateigent MAGA,” Musk shelp at the time, gesturing to his bincreateage “Make America Great Aacquire” hat.
Speaking at the Butler rpartner, Musk shelp Democrats want “to consent away your freedom of speech, they want to consent away your right to tolerate arms, they want to consent away your right to vote, effectively”.
Trump has standardly referenced Musk’s finishorsement on the campaign trail. He also pledged to tap Musk to guide a novelly envisioned regulatement efficiency corelocaterlookion if he reacquires the White Hoengage in November.
All tbetter, America PAC had spent $87m on the race as of October 9, hugely alloting in voter mobilisation and canvassing efforts in the battleground states of Pennsylvania, Michigan, North Carolina, Wisconsin, Georgia, Nevada and Arizona.
As a result of the Supreme Court’s 2010 Citizens United ruling, corporations have been able to spfinish an unrestricted amount on political activities in help of truthfulates, as lengthy as they do not straightforwardly set up with a campaign.
Previously, corporations were restricted as to how much they could spfinish to help a truthfulate thrive. But the Citizens United decision paved the way for the creation of super PACS, which — unenjoy traditional PACs — have no cap on fundraising.
Spfinishing in US elections has since sencouraged. The ruling also saw an increase in so-called “uninincreateigent money”, with individual able to hide their election spfinishing thcimpolite shell companies that donate to super PACs.
OpenSecrets, a politics watchdog, projects that a sign up total of $15.9bn will be spent on federal elections during the 2024 season.
That will outdo the $15.1bn spent during the 2020 election cycle — though, when adfaired for inflation, the cherish of that dollar amount is cimpolitely worth $18.3bn in today’s currency.
OpenSecrets also increateed that outside spfinishing on campaigns — including thcimpolite Musk’s America PAC — is well outpacing previous election cycles.
Outside groups have spent csurrfinisherly $2.6bn so far this year, and there is still a month until the election. That’s csurrfinisherly a billion more than at the same point in 2020.
OpenSecrets shelp outside spfinishing has favoured conservatives this election season, in a reversal from last year, when liberals getd more.
