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☆ Opinion | The Tech Bro Style in American Politics
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-26 | by ( Paul Krugman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

It seems hard to believe now, but in 2021, Time named Elon Musk its Person of the Year. Musk’s right-wing turn isn’t universal or even typical: Reporting suggests that even with the rightward turn of several boldface names, Silicon Valley remains heavily Democratic. But right-wing tech bros are exerting a significant and, I’d argue, malign influence on the political landscape. Consider the case of JD Vance, the junior senator from Ohio and Donald Trump’s running mate. He’s a remarkable campaigner — remarkable, that is, in the sense that he seems incredibly bad at it.

Persons: Elon, Musk, I’d, JD Vance, Donald Trump’s, Vance, —, rollouts Organizations: Time, SpaceX, Twitter Locations: Silicon, Ohio

☆ Opinion | Silicon Valley’s MAGA Moment
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-25 | by ( Chris Hughes | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

I co-founded Facebook in college 20 years ago, but I left California and start-up culture behind long ago for public policy and economics. As we sat over scrambled eggs, chicken sausage and whole-wheat toast, I was struck by how many of the wealthiest and most powerful figures in Silicon Valley — including some I knew — were now loudly backing Mr. Trump. Mr. Trump claims that Mark Zuckerberg called him to say that he wouldn’t support a Democrat in November, although Mr. Zuckerberg’s spokesperson denied the claim. It would be easy to write off tech’s rightward drift as nothing more than the rich acting in their economic self-interest, but Silicon Valley has always been driven by profit, and it hasn’t tilted Republican since the 1980s. Even now, it remains largely Democratic, even though even some of Kamala Harris’s strongest Valley supporters worry about how she might approach tech policy.

Persons: Donald Trump, Trump, —, Marc Andreessen, Ben Horowitz, Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, Zuckerberg’s, Kamala Harris’s Organizations: Facebook Locations: Flatiron, Manhattan, California, Silicon Valley

☆ Elon Musk deletes post questioning the Trump assassination attempt
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-16 | by ( David Goldman | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Elon Musk deleted a post Monday morning that questioned why former President Donald Trump has faced two apparent assassination attempts in recent months while President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris have not encountered any. “And no one is even trying to assassinate Biden/Kamala 🤔,” Musk wrote in the now-deleted X post. However, Musk subsequently responded to a similar post, replying with a thinking face emoji to a photo that noted the four presidents who preceded Trump faced no assassination attempts when Trump has apparently encountered two. CNN requested comment from the Secret Service, which is tasked with investigating perceived threats against the president and vice president – sometimes even if they are made in jest. Musk endorsed Trump for president after an assassination attempt in July, and he hosted Trump last month in an interview on X.It’s part of a rightward shift for Musk that has gained steam in recent years.

Persons: CNN — Elon, Donald Trump, Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, Musk, Biden, Kamala 🤔, ”, ake, hite Organizations: CNN, ust Locations: usk, ut, …

Some sections are backward-looking and focus more on touting the record of the Biden-Harris administration, while also criticizing Trump’s agenda. The health care section of Harris’ agenda focuses more on what the Biden-Harris administration has done than plans for the future. The Harris agenda vows to “fight to raise the minimum wage,” but doesn’t say how high she wants it to be. The Harris campaign would not say whether she supports doing away with the 60-vote rule to pass those measures. The bulk of Harris’ agenda would be subject to congressional approval, likely requiring Democrats to control the House and Senate to have a strong chance of passage.

Persons: Kamala Harris, Donald Trump, Harris, Joe Biden, ”, “, Sydney Smith, Republicans scoff, ” Sen, John Cornyn, Harris hasn’t, “ I’m, Biden, Republicans tanked, Trump, Karoline Leavitt, “ They’ve, Ron Wyden, “ We’re, ” Harris, Hasan Pyarali Organizations: WASHINGTON, Biden, Republican, New York Times, Trump, Wake Forest University, Republicans, GOP, NBC News, Security, Social Security, Medicare, Senate, Border Patrol, The Society, Technology, ”, CNN, ABC, Democratic Locations: North Carolina, Texas, America

☆ How Elon Musk has turned X into a pro-Trump machine
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-13 | by ( Clare Duffy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

But now Musk, who is not only the owner but also the most followed user on X, has shifted to more direct campaigning for former President Donald Trump. Musk announced his official endorsement for Trump in a post last month that received 2.3 million likes. Weeks after it was posted, the video is not labeled with a “community note,” X’s community fact-checking feature that Musk used as justification for slashing the company’s trust and safety team. In a letter, the secretaries urged Musk to “immediately implement changes” on the X platform. But on Monday night, Musk offered to take a role in the potential future Trump’s administration helping to rein in government spending.

Persons: Elon Musk, Donald Trump, Musk, He’s, Hunter, Trump, YOU, Trump’s, “, Elon, ” Trump, Kamala Harris, doesn’t, ” Wendy Weiser, Brennan, Harris, ”, ” Weiser, Kamala, …, White supremacists, X, Musk’s, chatbot, Harris ’, ” Lara Cohen, informercial, he’s, ” Musk, “ I’d Organizations: New, New York CNN, Elon, Twitter, Biden, White, Trump, CNN, Fake News, Fake News Media, Center, “, Brennan Center for Justice, NYU Law School, Democratic, Street Locations: New York, United Kingdom

Ms. Harris dropped in on each one, in descending order of price and intimacy, as donors enjoyed peach mimosas and shrimp cocktails before her remarks in the grand ballroom. The Harris campaign is immediately being more intentional at courting this community, dispatching aides to meet with affinity groups representing venture capitalists and the cryptocurrency industry. And she has hired additional fund-raising aides with ties to the Bay Area who helped organize Sunday’s event. Ms. Harris also has connections that Mr. Biden simply does not. Josh Becker, who represents much of Silicon Valley in the California Senate and is close with many industry heavyweights, said he had hosted Ms. Harris in his home two decades ago.

Persons: Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, Biden, Harris’s, givers, Harris, ”, “ Harris Walz ”, Donald J, Trump, podcaster David Sacks, Sacks, Sheryl Sandberg, Laurene Powell Jobs, Steve Jobs, Josh Becker, Becker, ” Mr, Jason Henry, Nancy Pelosi, Jeffrey Katzenberg, Tom Steyer, Liz Simons, John Doerr, Reid Hoffman, Steve Westly, Getty, scions, Westly, Harris “, Eleni Kounalakis, —, ” Lateefah Simon, “ Kamala Harris, Simon, “ She’s, Ms, Ron Conway, Steve Spinner, Barack Obama’s, Hopkins, Mr, Spinner Organizations: Sunday, Obama, Bay Area, Facebook, Apple, San, California Senate, The New York Times, Biden, Area, InterContinental Locations: San Francisco, Nob, Woodside, Menlo, California, Pacific Heights, Silicon Valley, Versailles, Bay

Based on Trump's social media commentary, more about their relationship may be coming soon. Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social on Tuesday that the two will be speaking together publicly next week. Trump wrote. 'I have no choice'Since gaining Musk's support, Trump has returned the praise. On the day of Trump's speech in Nashville, Musk wrote "Save our kids!"

Persons: Elon Musk, Donald Trump, Evan Vucci, Donald Trump's, Trump, he'd, Elon, He's, Musk, What's, podcaster Jordan Peterson, they've, Kamala Harris, he's, it's, Joe Biden, Steven Cheung, Biden, Tesla wasn't, Tesla, Ron DeSantis, DeSantis, David Sacks, Trump's, CNBC's Joe Kernen, they're, Harris, Mark Fields, —, Fields, CNBC's Brian Sullivan, Giorgia Meloni, Javier Milei, Jair Bolsonaro, Narendra Modi, Benjamin Netanyahu, Kevin Mohatt, Kamala, Mike Moritz, Moritz, Brian Schwartz, Christina Wilkie Organizations: SpaceX, White, AP NASHVILLE, Bitcoin Conference, Elon, Music City Center, Trump, Republican, PAC, North Carolina Attorney General's, America PAC, ELON, Biden, General Motors, Ford, Musk, Tesla, Bitcoin, Italian, Indian, Capitol, Air Force, Joint Base Andrews, Financial Locations: Washington, Tenn, —, Nashville, Memphis , Tennessee, Pennsylvania, Michigan, tamp, Florida, Lago, China, U.S, Atlanta, Gaza, Wisconsin, Joint Base Andrews , Maryland, West Palm Beach , Florida, Silicon Valley

☆ An inside look at the Supreme Court and 3 key justices
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-03 | by ( Zachary B. Wolf | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —The US Supreme Court holds immense power over Americans’ lives but is incredibly tight-lipped about how it reaches decisions. Do they care about the perception that the Supreme Court is out of step with the country? How do you think that proposal is going over at the Supreme Court? WOLF: If Trump wins, do you expect any justices would retire? BISKUPIC: If Trump wins, the leading candidates for retirement would be Justices Clarence Thomas (age 76) and Alito (age 74).

Persons: ’, Joe Biden, Joan Biskupic, You’ve, Amy Coney Barrett, Samuel Alito, John Roberts, I’m, Barrett, Alito, WOLF, SCOTUS, Justice Barrett, Trump, Roberts, Donald Trump, Trumpism, Biden, Kamala Harris, Clarence Thomas, Harris, Sonia Sotomayor, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Antonin Scalia, Ginsburg, Scalia, They’re Organizations: CNN, Supreme, Trump Locations: Idaho, Trump

☆ As Ryan Salame stares down years in prison for his role in FTX, he's spending his time doing what he loves: posting
▼ + stars: | 2024-08-02 | by ( Haven Orecchio-Egresitz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

Read previewIn May, Ryan Salame was sentenced to 7½ years in prison for his role in Sam Bankman-Fried's multi-billion-dollar cryptocurrency fraud. In May, US District Judge Lewis Kaplan — who also oversaw Bankman-Fried's trial — sentenced Salame to 7.5 years in prison, higher than what prosecutors recommended. AdvertisementSalame says without evidence that a key witness in Bankman-Fried's trial liedSalame pleaded guilty to charges against him in September, shortly before the start of Bankman-Fried's criminal trial in Manhattan. At the trial, Singh said he initially cared about the political donations, but later just did whatever Salame told him to. In social media posts, Salame said Singh wasn't being truthful about his role in the use of FTX customer funds.

Persons: —, Ryan Salame, Sam Bankman, Salame, Fried, SBF, Trump, Donald Trump, RyAN, Lewis Kaplan —, Kaplan, ANGELA WEISS, weren't, German Shepherd, Caroline Ellison, Gary Wang, Nashad Singh —, Wang, Singh, Ellison hasn't, Salame didn't, didn't, Nishad Singh, FTX, Ellison, Singh wasn't, Nishad, I've, Guy, hasn't, he's, Joe Biden, Bitcoin, Gary Gensler, Biden, Kamala Harris Organizations: Service, Business, Alameda Research, US Bureau of Prisons, US, Mega, FTX, Circle Trade, CPA, HK, Republican Party, Twitter, Alamada Research, Prosecutors, Getty, FTX's, Office, Southern, of, Bankman, Republican, Alameda, SEC, Trump Card Locations: Bankman, FTX, Alameda, Bahamas, America, Nashville, Manhattan, Washington ,, United States, German, of New York, York

☆ With tech leaders like Elon Musk turning to Trump, more than 100 Silicon Valley investors pledge support for Harris
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-31 | by ( Alice Tecotzky | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A group of right-wing venture capitalists have voiced support for Donald Trump and JD Vance, who was once a venture capitalist himself. "They don't speak for me," she said of Musk and other right-wing Silicon Valley leaders. "They don't speak for most of us. Harris, who was born in Oakland and is known as a pro-business politician, has a more sustained connection to Silicon Valley than Biden did. Next month, Harris will travel to Silicon Valley for a fund-raising trip in her continued effort reclaim the region amid its rightward tilt.

Persons: —, Kamala Harris —, Harris, Reid Hoffman, Mark Cuban, Ron Conway, Leslie Feinzaig, Graham, Walker, Donald Trump, JD Vance, Elon Musk, Marc Andreesen, Ben Horowitz, David Sacks, Trump, Feinzaig, MAGA, " Harris, Biden, Vance Organizations: Service, VCsForKamala.org, LinkedIn, Dallas Mavericks, Business, New York Times Locations: Oakland, Silicon, Silicon Valley

☆ Big Tech's phony Trumpism
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-22 | by ( Adam Rogers | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Before Andreessen and Horowitz formed their venture-capital firm in 2009, Andreessen was an incisive observer of Silicon Valley. Big Andreesen (meaning the current bloated billionaire model) also contradicts Little Andreessen (the earlier, leaner blogger) on the issue of regulation. The reason, he now claims, is that government used to leave Silicon Valley alone. He and his fellow Silicon Valley investor-class billionaires have been sliding rightward for years. It's that I didn't see that this is where Silicon Valley was always headed.

Persons: Marc Andreessen, Donald Trump, That's, Andreessen, Bill Clinton, Hillary, Ben Horowitz, Elon Musk, Larry Ellison —, Trump, —, I've, Horowitz, It's, America's, Biden, Barack Obama, Joe Biden, they're, Dave Karpf, Hillary Clinton, we've Organizations: Democratic, Little Tech, Tech, Government, America, Justice Department, Microsoft, Trump, Little, Bloomberg Technology Conference, Netscape Locations: Silicon Valley, Silicon

☆ Trump says he loves Elon Musk even though he never heard of the $45 million-a-month donation plan from the billionaire
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-21 | by ( Lloyd Lee | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Read previewDuring a rally in Michigan on Saturday, Donald Trump had high praise for Elon Musk, calling the Tesla CEO a "great" and "brilliant guy." Musk came out with an endorsement of Trump on July 13, the day of the assassination attempt. "I read — I didn't even know this, he didn't even tell me about it, but he gives me $45 million a month," Trump said. Related storiesDuring the Saturday rally, Trump said he thinks electric cars are "incredible, but they're not for everybody." It will only help Tesla," Musk said on X on July 16.

Persons: —, Donald Trump, Elon Musk, Musk, Trump, Elon, DJT, they're, Biden, Tesla Organizations: Service, Trump, Street, Business, Environmental Protection Agency, Twitter Locations: Michigan

☆ Wall Street’s Masters of the Universe Are Masters of None in 2024 Race
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-20 | by ( Maureen Farrell | Rob Copeland | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

It’s a bad time to be a finance billionaire. Republicans on Wall Street, who had been largely coalescing around former President Donald J. Trump’s efforts to return to office, suffered outright repudiation this week with his pick of Senator JD Vance of Ohio as a running mate. Mr. Vance, a harsh critic of corporate interests and a former venture capitalist, solidified a feeling in the world of high finance that the balance of power in the party had suddenly shifted westward to Silicon Valley. In choosing Mr. Vance, Mr. Trump brushed off personal entreaties from some of the Republican Party’s biggest donors. While accepting his nomination on Wednesday at the Republican convention in Milwaukee, he said the party was done “catering to Wall Street.”

Persons: Donald J, JD Vance, Vance, Trump, Marco Rubio, Doug Burgum, Tim Scott of, ” Organizations: Washington , D.C, Wall, Republican Locations: Washington ,, Ohio, Silicon Valley, Marco Rubio of Florida, North Dakota, Tim Scott of South Carolina, America, Milwaukee

☆ Ursula von der Leyen elected to second term as European Commission president
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-18 | by ( Christian Edwards | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —Ursula von der Leyen has been reelected to a second five-year term as president of the European Commission after a vote by EU lawmakers, as the continent’s mainstream seeks to reassert itself in the face of a resurgent far right. After a secret ballot, von der Leyen was reelected with 401 votes in favor and 284 against. Addressing the parliament before the lunchtime vote, von der Leyen said the next five years of her term “will define Europe’s place in the world for the next five decades. Von der Leyen was reelected after 401 EU lawmakers voted in favor of her presidency. Johannes Simon/Getty ImagesEarlier Thursday, von der Leyen published a 31-page policy proposal, setting out her priorities if she won a second term.

Persons: Ursula von der Leyen, von der Leyen, Von der Leyen, ” Von der, Angela Merkel, Emmanuel Macron –, Von der, Johannes Simon, Getty, ” Von der Leyen, Donald Trump, Viktor Orban’s, Vladimir Putin, ” Organizations: CNN, European Commission, EU, European Defense Union ”, European People’s Party, EPP, Socialist, Green, European Defense Union, Ukraine, Covid Locations: Strasbourg, France, Ukraine, Brussels, Europe, United States, Hungarian, Moscow

☆ America’s New Catholic Priests: Young, Confident and Conservative
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-10 | by ( Ruth Graham | Nick Hagen | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The next morning, they would make lifelong promises of celibacy and obedience, and they were palpably elated by the prospect. There was a time where the church “maybe apologized for being Catholic,” he said later in the conversation. He and the other new priests agreed they were called to something different: advancing the Catholic faith, even the parts that could seem out of place in an increasingly hostile world. “The church is Catholic, and so we should announce that joyfully,” he said. Surveys tracking the opinions of priests have found that, starting in the 1980s, each new wave of priests in the United States is noticeably more conservative than the one before it, Dr. Vermurlen said.

Persons: Zachary Galante, Francis, “, ” Deacon Galante, Father Galante, ”, we’ve, Brad Vermurlen, Thomas, Vermurlen Organizations: Francis de Sales Seminary, Catholic, American Catholic Church, University of St Locations: St, Houston, United States

☆ French voters head to polls for crucial second round of snap parliamentary election
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-07 | by ( Christian Edwards | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

The newly-formed left-wing coalition, the New Popular Front (NFP), came second with 28%, while Macron’s Ensemble alliance trailed in a distant third with 21%. In the outgoing parliament, Macron’s alliance had only 250 seats, and so needed support from other parties to pass laws. In an attempt not to split the anti-far right vote, more than 200 candidates from Macron’s alliance and the NFP agreed to stand down in the second round. Whatever the result of Sunday’s vote, France seems set to endure a period of political chaos, with Macron unable to call another parliamentary election for at least a year. Jordan Bardella speaks at the RN headquarters in Paris after the first round of voting, June 30, 2024.

Persons: Emmanuel Macron, –, Jordan Bardella, Bardella, Gerald Darmanin, Sarah Meyssonnier, Macron, Jean, Luc Melenchon, Raphael Gluckmann, Gabriel Attal, Macron’s Organizations: CNN — Voters, Front, NFP, National Assembly, Macron’s, France Unbowed, Melenchon Locations: France, Vichy, Paris, Europe, Brussels, Ukraine

☆ A Dark Day for Democrats
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-28 | by ( Carl Hulse | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Democrats confronted a nightmare scenario on Friday as they surveyed the wreckage of major political, policy and legal disasters piled atop one another with elections for control of the White House and Congress less than five months away. Even as they reeled from President Biden’s poor performance on Thursday night in a make-or-break debate with former President Donald J. Trump, Democrats were slammed anew on Friday by the Supreme Court. In one far-reaching ruling, the court undercut the government’s longstanding power to regulate health care, public safety and the environment — a core tenet of Democratic orthodoxy. In another, the justices handed down a decision that could make it more difficult to prosecute those who attacked the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, and potentially Mr. Trump himself, for their roles in the violent insurrection. It was a day that encapsulated the party’s worst fears about the coming elections and the rightward tilt of the Supreme Court.

Persons: Biden’s, Donald J, Trump, — Organizations: White House, Supreme, Capitol

☆ A timeline of Elon Musk's political stances and donations before his latest embrace of the Republican Party
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-27 | by ( Jake Lahut | Grace Eliza Goodwin | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

And as one of the richest and most powerful people in the world, Musk's political stances carry a great weight. Musk's political donations dating back to 2002 fit neatly into just a single landing page on OpenSecrets, a nonprofit organization that tracks money in politics. AdvertisementThough Musk historically hasn't been big on political donations, he's publicly said that he weighs in on politics when it could affect his businesses. Musk's political coming of age during the pre-social media era remains much of a mystery. His latest donations have all been to Republican candidates and causes, with Sen. Chris Coons of Delaware being the last Democrat to receive any Musk donations back in 2020.

Persons: —, Elon, hasn't, that's, he's, Trump, Joe Biden, Donald Trump, Musk, Elon Musk, Paul Harris, Errol —, Ashlee Vance's, Musk's, Andrew Panzera, Tesla, Martin Eberhard, Marc Tarpenning, Trump Tesla, Alex Brandon Musk, George W, Bush, John Kerry, Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, Clinton, Sen, Chris Coons, Rex Tillerson's, Hillary Clinton's, Marc Piasecki, Ron DeSantis, DeSantis, Biden, Nelson Peltz, MAGA, — Musk Organizations: Service, SpaceX, Business, White, Tesla, Getty, Pretoria City Council, Progressive Party, New York Times, Times, PayPal, Trump, Donald Trump AP, Democratic, California Democrats, National Republican Congressional, GOP, Republican, Elon, State, Paris Climate, America, NASA, Biden's, Cannes Lions, Democratic Party, Republican Florida Gov, Twitter Locations: Africa, Los Angeles, Republic of South Africa, Pretoria, South Africa, Canada, Johannesburg, Silicon Valley, California, Sens, Delaware, Paris, Texas, Musk's Texas

☆ Our contributors rewatched the 2020 Biden-Trump debates for clues. Here’s what they predict will happen Thursday
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-24 | by ( Cnn Opinion | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +27 min

Kate Bedingfield served as White House communications director in the Biden administration and was the deputy campaign manager on Biden’s 2020 presidential campaign. That contentious exchange during the 2020 debate put Biden on the defensive. A President Trump might make their decisions about retirement that much easier. David Urban, a CNN political commentator, served as an adviser to then-President Trump’s 2020 re-election campaign. On Thursday, President Biden needs to do it again.

Persons: isn’t, Joe Biden’s, Donald Trump’s, —, Stephanie Griffith, Scott Jennings, Trump, Donald Trump, Joe Biden, Biden, counterpunched Biden, CNN Trump masterfully, ” Scott Jennings Trump, mightily, George W, Bush, Sen, Mitch McConnell, Sophia A, Nelson Stephanie Honikel, Chris Wallace, Wallace, Trump’s, it’s, Nelson, It’s, Kate Bedingfield, Donald Trump Kate Bedingfield, Shermichael Singleton, Bill Clinton’s, James Carville, “, Democratic Barack Obama, they're, aren’t, “ It’s, David Axelrod, people’s, ” Biden, jibing Trump, ”, Barack Obama, Obama, David Urban, Amy Coney Barrett, Amy Coney Barrett's, Roe, Wade, Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton, Reagan, Clinton, ” David Urban, Dobbs, Lady Jill Biden, Samuel Alito, Clarence Thomas, Bakari Sellers, Abraham Lincoln, chokeholds, Emmett Till, HBCUs ? Biden, Hilary Krieger Organizations: CNN, White, Biden, Scott Jennings CNN, Trump, Democratic, Republican, RunSwitch Public Relations, Capitol, GOP, Republican Government Reform, White House, NBC, Marist, Fox News, Global, Senate, United, Appeals, Federalist Society, American, United State Supreme Court, National Guard, South Carolina House of, Strom Law, CNN Opinion’s Locations: Cleveland , Ohio, Nashville , Tennessee, New York, Louisville , Kentucky, Charlottesville , Virginia, “, White, Charlottesville, Michigan, Scranton, Claymont, America, United States, Pennsylvania, HBCUs

☆ The reclusive billionaire who's spent $75 million on Trump and $25 million on RFK Jr.
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-22 | by ( Bryan Metzger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

He has since given $25 million to the super PAC, including $10 million in April. At the same time, Mellon has contributed handsomely to the pro-Trump super PAC "Make America Great Again Inc.," pouring $25 million into the PAC from July 2023 to April 2024. But he's given millions of dollars to GOP causes and campaigns in recent years, including $20 million to a pro-Trump super PAC in 2020, $45 million to a super PAC tied to GOP House leadership, and $30 million to a super PAC associated with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell. "MAGA Republicans are hellbent on propping up RFK Jr. to be a spoiler for Trump in this race," Corridoni said in a statementat the time. "This is even more proof that a vote for RFK Jr. is a vote for Trump."

Persons: —, Timothy Mellon, Donald Trump, Robert F, Kennedy Jr, Kennedy, — Mellon, Mellon, Trump, Andrew Mellon, he's, Greg Abbott, Mitch McConnell, Joe Biden's, Matt Corridoni, MAGA, Corridoni Organizations: Service, GOP, Business, Democratic, Trump, Inc, PAC, MAGA Inc, Federal, Forbes, Pan Am Systems, Bloomberg, Republican Gov, GOP House, Democratic National, MAGA Republicans, RFK Jr Locations: Kennedy's, Manhattan, Texas, Mexico, propping

What's next: Media Matters filed a motion to dismiss Musk's lawsuit in March, but a judge has yet to rule. VCG/GettyGovernment lawsuits and investigationsSEC investigation into Musk's Twitter takeoverThe issues: The Securities and Exchange Commission is investigating Elon Musk's Twitter purchase. Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty ImagesPersonal lawsuits against MuskTornetta v. MuskThe issues: Tesla shareholder Richard Tornetta sued Musk and Tesla in a class action lawsuit regarding Musk's compensation package, which was worth $55.8 billion at the time. Several lawsuits also allege Musk discriminated against them because of their race, gender, or disability in choosing to fire them. The executives were set to receive golden parachutes, but claim Musk and X have not paid them out.

Persons: —, Elon Musk, Musk, Claire Boucher, Grimes, Alex Spiro, Sam Altman, Donald Trump, Spiro, Anna Webber, Angelo Carusone, What's, Gina Carano, Schaerr Jaffe, Tesla, Musk's, Elon, SEC hasn't, Elon Musk's, who've, Owen Diaz, Matt Winkelmeyer, Richard Tornetta, Kimbal Musk, He's, Boucher, Benjamin Brody, Brody, Brody reverberated, Ben Brody, didn't, Robert Kaiden, Kaiden, he's, Agrawal, Parag Agrawal, Ned Segal, Twitter Vijaya Gadde, Sean Edgett, Segal, hadn't Organizations: Service, SpaceX, Business, OpenAI, SEC, Trump, Trump —, Elon, Variety, Media, X Corp, Disney, National Labor Relations Board, UAW, Tesla, Getty Government, Twitter, Securities, Exchange Commission, Justice Department, Reuters, Traffic, Administration, NHTSA, Apple, NLRB, Musk's SpaceX, US, Employment Opportunity, Musk, Nazi, Litigation Locations: Texas, Texas and Missouri, America, Nazi Germany, California, Delaware, San Francisco

☆ G7 leaders huddle in Italy, escaping political peril at home
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-13 | by ( Kevin Liptak | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Rarely has the yearly gathering of the world’s leading economies been so overshadowed by the political vulnerabilities of nearly all its members. She emerged as the only European G7 leader bolstered by last week’s European Parliament elections. “I am proud that Italy will present itself to the G7, to Europe with the strongest government of all. The leaders of France and Germany are contending with very different sets of political circumstances. Whether it is Trump at the G7 table next year or Biden is among the great unknowable questions hanging over the gathering.

Persons: Joe Biden’s, Donald Trump, Emmanuel Macron, don’t, Jake Sullivan, Sullivan, Biden, –, ”, Volodymyr Zelensky, Zelensky, “, Josh Lipsky, Giorgia Meloni, Meloni, Trump, Brothers, ” Meloni, Rishi Sunak, Canada’s Justin Trudeau —, Japan’s Fumio Kishida, who’s Organizations: CNN, Parliamentary, National Assembly, “, Ukraine, GeoEconomics, Atlantic Council, Italian, United, Conservative Political, Conference, Reuters, Trump Locations: Italy, Puglia, France, United Kingdom, United States, Paris, Ukraine, Russia, Kyiv, it’s, China, India, Brazil, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, Europe, Germany, Britain, Sicily, haggling, Quebec, Biarritz

☆ In Germany, Far-Right Party Rises to 2nd Place in E.U. Election
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-10 | by ( Sarah Maslin Nir | Christopher F. Schuetze | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The right-wing Alternative for Germany party won a record number of votes in European Union elections on Sunday, in a sharp rebuke to Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s governing three-party coalition in Germany and a sign of the rightward political shift across the continent. The party, known as AfD, captured 16 percent of the vote, placing second behind Germany’s conservative Christian Democrats, which won 30 percent. It was AfD’s strongest showing in a nationwide election, and it came as Mr. Scholz’s coalition has reached record-low levels of popularity in the country, according to polls. A spokesman for Mr. Scholz has ruled out early elections. Describing her party’s showing a “major success,” Ms. Weidel said at a news conference in Berlin that the government was working against, not for, Germany.

Persons: Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s, Scholz’s, Alice Weidel, Mr, Scholz, Emmanuel Macron, ” Ms, Weidel, ” Organizations: Germany, Christian Democrats, “ Locations: Germany, France, Berlin

☆ Europe’s center ground is shifting further to the right
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-09 | by ( Luke Mcgee | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

And while the far right is on course to make large gains, the center parties remain ahead. For those on the center right, domestic political shifts to the hard right could make working with the hard right increasingly attractive at a European level. The deadline for this is months away, which leaves a lot of time for horse-trading, which could see elements of the center right and hard right cooperate. It’s not implausible that the center right could vote with the left on issues like support for Ukraine, but then work with the hard right on immigration and climate policy. That was the result of years of domestic politics shifting in the UK, the center right shifting to fend off the hard right, ultimately leading to that rupture.

Persons: –, it’s, It’s, Emmanuel Macron, Pen, Macron, Brothers, Benito Mussolini, Ursula von der Leyen, she’s Organizations: CNN, European Union, EU, European People’s Party, Socialists, Democrats, Europe Greens, Conservative Reformers, European Locations: Europe, Ukraine, Brussels, Netherlands, France, Italy, EU

☆ Jack Dorsey gave $10 million to an anonymous founder with a deep devotion to a fascist 'guru'
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-06 | by ( Katherine Long | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

"It's a truly open protocol. Advertisement"We don't know who the leader is, it's like this anonymous Brazilian," Dorsey said. It's not clear how much of the $10 million Dorsey gave to support the development of Nostr will make its way to Parra. Parra, as Fiatjaf, sits on a committee established by the organization to organize Nostr development efforts, Bitcoin Magazine reported. After an X user suggested to Dorsey that he help fund Nostr, Dorsey replied within 24 hours, "funding deployed to @fiatjaf."

Persons: —, Jack Dorsey, Dorsey, Nostr, Edward Snowden, Giovanni Torres Parra, Olavo de Carvalho, de Carvalho —, Parra, Olavo, Jair Bolsonaro's, Fiatjaf, It's, . Parra, Forbes Organizations: Service, Business, Pepsi, Forbes, Sats Initiative, Bitcoin Magazine, Austrian Locations: Brazilian, Virginia, Brazil, Dorsey

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