Elon Musk has been revealed as one of the largest donors to a PAC aimed at keeping congressional Republicans in control of the House of Representatives.
Annual fillings released by the Federal Election Commission this week show Musk was among the top 50 donors to the Protect The House PAC, giving a total of $38,900, according to The Hill.
The sum is modest in comparison to other donors in the FEC filings. Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen donated $100,000 to the PAC while Houston Texans owner Bob McNair gave $371,500.
Annual fillings released by the Federal Election Commission this week show Elon Musk was among the top 50 donors to the Protect The House PAC (Pictured: April 30, 2015)
Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen (L) donated $100,000 to the PAC while Houston Texans owner Bob McNair (R) gave $371,500
Still, Musk was among the top 50 donors to the PAC in the second quarter, which has already raised $8 million, according to ProPublica.
Musk, 47, who is reportedly friends with House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy(R-Calif.), has a history of donating to politicians from both parties.
During a 2011 interview at the University of California San Diego, the business magnate described himself as ‘somewhere in the middle’ between Democrat and Republican, noting that he was ‘socially liberal and fiscally conservative.’
But last month, Musk took to Twitter and proclaimed himself to be a ‘socialist,’ a notion that was widely mocked by social media users who scoffed at the idea that one of the richest men on the planet was a proponent of ‘social welfare’ and ‘workers.’
‘By the way, I am actually a socialist. Just not the kind that shifts resources from most productive to least productive, pretending to do good, while actually causing harm. True socialism seeks greatest good for all,’ Musk stated in the tweet.
Musk, 47, who is reportedly friends with Republican House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (pictured), has a history of donating to politicians from both parties (May 4, 2017)
Last month, Musk took to Twitter and proclaimed himself to be a ‘socialist,’ a notion that was widely mocked by social media users
The South African technology mogul is worth an estimated $20 billion and own numerous companies
One issue he’s not ambiguous about is the threat of climate change, which many elected Republicans deny is being impacted by human activity
Business Insider reported that the South African technology mogul is worth an estimated $20 billion.
One issue he’s not ambiguous about is the threat of climate change, which many elected Republicans deny is being impacted by human activity.
Trump chose to remove the US from the historic Paris climate agreement in 2017, leading Musk to quit two White House advisory boards on business
Musk has been an outspoken critic of such skeptics, telling Rolling Stone in an interview last year that ‘Climate change is the biggest threat that humanity faces this century, except for (artificial intelligence).‘
‘I keep telling people this. I hate to be Cassandra here, but it’s all fun and games until somebody loses a f*****g eye. This view [of climate change] is shared by almost everyone who’s not crazy in the scientific community.’
‘Cassandra’ is a character in Greek mythology who was cursed to utter prophecies that were true but which no one believed.
Since the election of Donald Trump in 2016, the GOP has moved to dramatically cut environmental regulations imposed by the previous administration.
Moreover, Trump chose to remove the US from the historic Paris climate agreement in 2017, leading Musk to quit two White House advisory boards on business.
‘Am departing presidential councils. Climate change is real. Leaving Paris is not good for America or the world,’ Musk wrote in a tweet at the time.
Musk has previously donated to figures in the Democratic party, giving $2,300 to Hillary Clinton during both her 2008 and 2016 presidential campaigns.