Recent investigations have exposed a sophisticated dark money network directly linked to Elon Musk that operates through an intricate web of organizations that constitute progressive initiatives to support the campaign of former President Donald Trump. This network has been accused of all kinds of misconduct from legal albeit extremely cynical ads to buying votes (indirectly) and potentially criminal impersonation.
The Building America’s Future group seems to be at the center of the scheme. This organization has received over $100 million in funding from Musk and other wealthy donors according to an investigation from the New York Times.
The latest initiative from the group, named Progress 2028, was launched in September 2023 and presents itself as an antagonist movement that combats the agenda promoted by the Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025. The site is clearly trying to portray that the information is coming from the Harris campaign, attributing extreme promises to Harris (like allowing schools to perform sex changes on kids without parental knowledge or consent) that are simply false.
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Corporate documents and other filings analyzed by OpenSecrets revealed the link between Progress 2028 and the Musk-backed BAF group.
Building America’s Future has channeled millions to different political action committees (PACs) that back Trump’s agenda including Citizens for Sanity – which received over $40 million in funding – and the Future Coalition PAC – a group that reportedly got $3 million from BAF to run controversial ads in Michigan that targeted Trump’s rival Kamala Harris.
Meanwhile, the Duty to America PAC got another $16 million to persuade young and black voters to vote for Trump while the Stand For Us PAC received nearly $4 million and spent $15 million to spread campaign adverts in Ohio.
The New York Times report mentioned a company named IMGE LLC which is managed by known members of the Republican party as the “hidden hand” behind BAF. These people have worked alongside Musk in other political initiatives.
Legal Experts Claim That Musk’s Giveaway is Illegal as It Is Conditional
Musk sparked a massive controversy recently when he pledged to give away $1 million every day until the November 5 presidential election to a randomly picked registered voter in the state of Pennsylvania who signed up for his America PAC’s petition supporting the US Constitution. To enter the drawing, you have to be registered to vote and sign the petition, which includes various right wing policies and rhetoric.
This pledge sparked criticism from legal experts, academics, and lawmakers who have questioned the legality of the move.
UCLA Law School professor Rick Hasen said: “Though maybe some of the other things Musk was doing were of murky legality, this one is clearly illegal.”
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Meanwhile, campaign finance lawyer Brendan Fischer noted that requiring voter registration as a prerequisite for eligibility potentially violates federal law while Northwestern University professor Michael Kang expressed his concern about the timing and context of the giveaway – just a few days before Election Day.
“There would be few doubts about the legality if every Pennsylvania-based petition signer were eligible, but conditioning the payments on registration arguably violates the law,” Fischer emphasized.
Two individuals have already received $1 million: John Dreher, who received a check during a rally in Harrisburg, and Kristine Fishell.
Two $1 MILLION checks have gone out to voters for signing our petition to support the Constitution.
A registered swing state voter who signs the petition will be selected to earn $1M as a spokesperson for America PAC every day until Election Day.
SIGN: https://t.co/TMeyWUhbrH pic.twitter.com/q1hlauy245
— America (@america) October 21, 2024
The state’s governor, Josh Shapiro, asked law enforcement agencies to launch an investigation into the matter already.
“Musk obviously has a right to be able to express his views. He’s made it very, very clear that he supports Donald Trump. I don’t. Obviously, we have a difference of opinion,” he told NBC shortly after Musk announced his pledge.
He added: “I don’t deny him that, right, but when you start flowing this kind of money into politics, I think it raises serious questions.”
However, even if any wrongdoing is proven, little will likely be done about it because of the US’ lacking election laws.
Progress 2028 Engage in Aggressive Marketing Campaign to Persuade Voters
Musk’s Progress 2028 project is perhaps even more suspicious as critics argue that is is trying to impersonate the Harris campaign, attributing wild and blatantly false policies to her. It doesn’t directly say that it was written by Harris or her team but it does use words like “our” and “we”, potentially designed to impersonate the team without explicit criminality.
If you want to learn more about the scheme, check out Open Secrets’ full breakdown.
The group has reportedly spent over $30,000 in political ads on Facebook and Instagram since October 11. These ads mostly appear to be aimed at attributing extreme positions to her. Open Secrets found one of these ads in Meta’s ad library. It does say that it was “not authorized by any candidate” but only in tiny, nearly unreadable print in the bottom corner of the ad.
Moreover, thousands of people have reportedly been targeted by text messages from the Progress 2028 website. The messages contain divisive content as well.
Musk’s Large War Chest Means Trouble for American Democracy
Currently, the world’s wealthiest individual with an estimated net worth of around $242 billion, Elon Musk’s involvement in American politics is a big deal.
He has reportedly committed over $70 million to Trump’s reelection while his America PAC has managed to receive over $75 million from donors in the past three months from Musk alone. Naturally, many Americans are worried that billionaires like Musk continue to gain more and more political power and influence in the US system.
These fears worsened when Trump offered Musk a wide-ranging position in the government with the power to cut spending. This is not only a massive conflict of interest because of the tens of millions of dollars he spent to reelect Trump but also because Musk’s companies (namely SpaceX and Tesla) benefit dramatically from government contracts and subsidies.
The committee has launched aggressive campaigns aimed at persuading voters that offer $100 in compensation for every resident of Pennsylvania who signs the “Support the Constitution” petition. People may also be entitled to receive another $100 if they refer another Pennsylvania resident successfully and $47 per referral for people who live in other swing states.
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Although Trump and Musk have not been supportive of each other in the past, the former president has called him a “friend” and has positive views about his contribution to America.
Musk became a vocal supporter of Trump in July 2023 following the former president’s assassination attempt. This alliance is quite influential and powerful considering the vast resources and fan bases that both characters boast.
US Campaign Finance Laws Need a Major Overhaul
The scale and sophistication of Musk’s political operations raise fundamental questions about the influence of billionaire donors and dark money in American democracy.
The lack of transparency is particularly concerning, as Building America’s Future is not legally required to report its finances, vendor payments, or outgoing grants for 2023 until after Election Day. Even then, the entity will not necessarily have to disclose its donors.
This opacity in political funding threatens to undermine democratic principles of transparency and fair representation. It allows billionaires and megacorporations to have incredible undue influence over the government.
As the November 5 election approaches, the impact of Musk’s unprecedented financial involvement in American politics will likely be substantial. And this may only be the beginning. Other billionaires and companies may catch wind of the power Musk is gaining with his ties to Trump and will likely follow suit.
Law enforcement and election officials are already be scrutinizing these activities while political observers continue to debate their long-term implications for American democracy. However, the reality is that likely nothing meaningful will be done until US campaign finance laws are changed significantly and Congress has little if any motive to do that as its members often benefit from the deluge of money.
What’s clear is that Musk’s political involvement has introduced new challenges to traditional rules concerning campaign finance and electoral fairness that will likely influence political discourse well beyond the 2024 election.