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Billionaire Elon Musk poured about $75 million over three months into an organization he set up to support former U.S. President Donald Trump, the 2024 Republican presidential candidate.
The spending, disclosed in a federal disclosure Tuesday, highlights how important a role Musk is playing in Trump’s effort to defeat Democratic candidate Kamala Harris in the Nov. 5 presidential election. I’m doing it.
It also highlights the enduring influence of mega-donors in American politics.
Earlier this month, Musk said in a speech for right-wing personality Tucker Carlson that he had formed an organization known as a political action committee, or PAC, to “support the core values that I believe in.”
The group, named America PAC, describes those values as the pursuit of secure borders, wise spending, safe cities, a fair judicial system, free speech, and self-defense.
Musk, the owner of car company Tesla, social media platform X and aerospace company SpaceX, is considered one of the richest people in the world.
The South African-born entrepreneur supported President Trump after the assassination attempt against the former president in July in Butler, Pennsylvania. Then, when Trump returned to Butler for another rally in October, Musk joined him on the campaign trail.
“As you can see, I’m not just MAGA. I’m DARK MAGA,” Musk said at the time, gesturing to a black hat that read “Make America Great Again.”
At the Butler rally, Musk said Democrats want to “take away your free speech, take away your right to bear arms, and effectively take away your right to vote.”
Trump has regularly cited Musk’s support during his campaign. He also pledged to appoint him to head a newly conceived government efficiency commission if Musk retakes the White House in November.
Overall, America PAC spent $87 million on campaigns as of Oct. 9, primarily investing in voter mobilization and outreach in battleground states such as Pennsylvania, Michigan, North Carolina, Wisconsin, Georgia, Nevada, and Arizona. .
As a result of the Citizens United Supreme Court decision in 2010, corporations can now spend unlimited amounts on political activities supporting candidates as long as they do not work directly with campaigns.
Previously, companies were limited in the amount of money they could spend to help candidates win. But Citizens United’s decision paves the way for the creation of super PACS, which, unlike traditional PACs, have no cap on fundraising.
Since then, U.S. election spending has skyrocketed. The ruling also noted the rise in so-called “dark money,” in which individuals can hide campaign spending through shell companies that donate to super PACs.
Political watchdog group OpenSecret predicts that a record $15.9 billion will be spent on the 2024 federal election.
That would exceed the $15.1 billion spent during the 2020 campaign, but adjusted for inflation, that amount would be roughly $18.3 billion in today’s currency.
OpenSecret also reported that outside campaign spending, including through Musk’s America PAC, is significantly higher than in past election cycles.
Outside groups have spent nearly $2.6 billion so far this year, and the election is still a month away. This is nearly 1 billion more cases than at the same point in 2020.
According to Open Secrets, outside spending is favoring conservatives this election season, a reversal from last year, when liberals received more money.
