Elon Musk's Blitzkrieg Campaign

The billionaire has conquered an entire presidential run for himself, how well does he use it?

Ever since the former president’s assassination attempt, Elon Musk has been on a mission to reach the inner circle of the Trump campaign through sheer volume of donations. This has succeeded, and Musk has effectively purchased a substantial share of the campaign, and therefore has had a say in how it’s run. This is not out of personal conviction, at least, not entirely. Musk depends on favorable regulation and government contracts for most of his wealth, it would be strange if he didn’t try to play the political game.

Most reporters have focused mainly on the big numbers that Musk has been flashing, over $118 million to his ‘America PAC’ at the time of writing, along with additional donations from allies that have brought the total budget to about $140 million. This is a sliver compared to the $889 million that the Koch Brothers’ political machine spent on the 2016 presidential election, but Musk has also leveraged his substantial political capital among Trump supporters to take center stage. While that $118 million number would have an impact on any election, it’s what those millions are being spent on that I find more interesting. About $18 million of that sum has gone to 18 lucky individuals in swing states as part of a give away where one person gets gifted $1 million for signing a petition. It’s a nice gesture, and has made at least 18 people very grateful to Musk while giving him a PR boost. But what has that remaining $100 million gone towards?