Hey, everyone! It’s Makena. I’m back after a charming getaway to the Adirondacks. A lot has happened since I’ve been gone. Namely, what the heck is happening with Joe Biden and the Democratic nomination?
Luckily, I spoke with Reid Hoffman, LinkedIn cofounder and Democratic mega-donor about Biden and whether Silicon Valley politics are swaying right.
Let’s talk about it.
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Reid Hoffman on Silicon Valley’s Support for Biden
There’s been a lot of reporting recently that the longtime liberal stronghold of Silicon Valley is shifting its support to former president Donald Trump. David Sacks, a venture capitalist and friend to Elon Musk, has said as much on his All In podcast. Last month he raised more than $12 million for the Trump campaign, triggering a groundswell of donations from investors like the Winklevoss twins and Shaun Maguire.
This morning, I’m publishing a new story looking at how true this narrative of shifting Silicon Valley support really is—and how this could change since Biden’s disastrous presidential debate.
But speaking with a handful of Democratic and Republican investors, it seems like not much has really shifted. Honestly, it sounds like some of the most prominent conservative venture capitalists have just gotten louder about their support for Trump.
I spoke with Reid for this story and want to share the whole interview with you here.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Makena: Is Silicon Valley moving further to the right?
Reid: No, but there is a portion of it. Every person who has been a lifelong Democrat in Silicon Valley is still a massive supporter of Biden and all the rest. Some lifelong Republicans still don’t like Trump because he’s anti-science and he’s an insurrectionist.
And some of them have gotten louder about supporting Trump because it’s a contrarian horse that they can ride in and become a truth-teller. So there’s louder voices among the lifelong Republicans for Trump than there were before, but they were there. They probably voted for Trump last time. They’re voting for Trump again.
Makena: Many of the “Silicon Valley insiders” who have been going to Mar-a-Lago and meeting with Trump are actually in the crypto industry, largely in response to Gary Gensler as Biden’s Securities and Exchange Commission chair. Do you think it’s the crypto industry that’s amplifying these calls that Silicon Valley is moving further to the right?
Reid. Very much. A lot of people are following the calculus, which is that Trump is quite operative and you can buy influence with him. The crypto industry is all about the economics on this stuff. They’ll sort it out if it’s Biden, but they can buy influence with Trump. I think there’s a big move from the crypto side to being pro-Trump.
Makena: Does Biden’s debate performance risk alienating more donors and people in Silicon Valley?
Reid: Sadly, yes. Silicon Valley, maybe even more vigorously than most places in the world, tends to focus on leaders. Who’s the founder? Who’s the CEO? It’s how we operate. I’ve been working to remind them about how the CEO is stronger because of their team composition.
Now it’s not just how do they stand up and speak in a debate, but how do they compare a strong team. You have to remind them it’s Gina Raimondo, Pete Buttigieg, and Jennifer Granholm. They think Lina Khan is terrible. I agree. But the overall team, including the chief of staff and all the rest, when you compare that with Trump, [Trump’s] overall team is terrible.
Makena: But another part of investing is betting that a company will be successful. In this case, donating to the campaign is betting that Biden can win. Are donors starting to withhold their support over doubts Biden could beat Trump?
Reid: It’s definitely caused a bunch of turmoil. I have seen emails from people in Silicon Valley who say they won’t donate more until they have more confidence. It’s a negative factor. Unequivocally, part of what I’m trying to be a voice for in this stuff is to say elections are a composition of negative factors and positive.
The fact is, people calling for Biden to step down should, frankly, call for both Biden and Trump to step down. You can say one should step down because he’s slow and the other should step down because he’s a lying felon.
[Last month, Democratic donors Lauren Powell Jobs and Ron Conway were looking for ways to convince Biden to drop out, according to The New York Times.]
Makena: What I’m hearing is that some donors aren’t completely dropping their support for Biden but are taking a beat to reevaluate. But does this go far enough to turn people toward Trump?
Reid: Absolutely zero. Part of the reason you hear such loud complaints about how Biden should release his delegates and open up the convention is because people are so frenetic about the dangers of Trump winning.
Makena: When it comes to folks like David Sacks supporting Trump, what is it that you think these people are hoping to receive in the end?
Reid: Ultimately, influence. Whether it’s crypto-favorable laws, ambassadorships in different countries, an ability to go to the White House, or maybe getting a Rush Limbaugh Medal of Freedom, it’s all about trying to buy influence.
Makena: What do you think the Biden campaign needs to do to counteract all of this?
Reid: I think the Biden campaign needs to show how strong the Biden presidency has been. That it’s not just a debate.
The Chatroom
Is this notion that Silicon Valley is becoming more conservative a load of hot air? Or is there a grain of truth to it? I’d love to hear what you think.
Leave a comment on the site, or send me an email at [email protected].
💬 Leave a comment below this article.
WIRED Reads
- The Far Right Is Already Demonizing Kamala Harris: President Joe Biden isn’t keen on dropping out of the presidential election just yet, but that hasn’t stopped far-right platforms and message boards from spewing hatred related to a possible Kamala Harris nomination.
- AI-Powered Super Soldiers Are More Than Just a Pipe Dream: The US military is building an AI-powered “hyper-enabled operator,” a new system to provide real-time data analysis and intel to its users.
- This is the Moment Team RFK Has Been Waiting For: Since the presidential debate, Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s presidential campaign has successfully leaned into X and TikTok as part of its strategy to get the third party candidate into the national conversation. It appears to be working.
Want more? Subscribe now for unlimited access to WIRED.
What Else We’re Reading
🔗 US and Allies Take Down Russian “Bot Farm” Powered By AI: The Justice Department seized control of a Russian propaganda operation that used AI to run hundreds of X accounts earlier this week. (The Washington Post)
🔗 The Aftermath of the Supreme Court’s NetChoice Ruling: On the same day as the presidential immunity ruling, the Supreme Court sent a pair of cases that could drastically weaken social media content moderation back down to the lower courts. (The Verge)
🔗 How Kamala Harris’ Awkward Moments Became Internet Gold: Taylor Lorenz wrote about the irony-pilled Kamala Harris memes that have surfaced since the Biden-Trump debate. The internet is coconut-maxxing a Harris presidency that I’m not entirely sure it really wants. (The Washington Post)
The Download
One last thing! On the pod today, Leah, David, and Tori discuss all of the conspiracies surrounding Kamala Harris online and how the Robert F. Kennedy Jr. campaign is leveraging the Democratic chaos to its advantage. Don’t forget to listen!
That’s it for today—thanks again for subscribing. You can get in touch with me via email, Instagram, X and Signal at makenakelly.32.
