Supreme Court Blocks Key Part of Campaign Law

[Winehole23]

amazing what $1.6b in dark money can do in just a few years. Ginni Thomas was involved at the ground floor.




The movement’s triumphs are now visible but its engine remains hidden: A billion-dollar network of groups, most of which are registered as tax-exempt charities or social welfare organizations. Taking advantage of gaps in disclosure laws, they shield the identities of most of their donors and some of the recipients of the funds. Among those who’ve been paid by the groups are leading thinkers and individuals with close personal ties to Leo — including a whopping $7 million to a group run by a close friend and his wife. They also include a for-profit business for which Leo himself is chairman and which received tens of millions of dollars from his nonprofit network.Leo’s role as the central figure in this movement has long been known, culminating in his acquisition last year of what many believe to be the largest political donation in history. Few are aware of the extent to which the movement’s baby steps were taken in concert with Ginni Thomas.

Two months before the Citizens United decision, but after the justices had signaled their intentions by requesting new arguments, attorney Cleta Mitchell — later to play a role (https://www.cnn.com/2021/10/13/politics/trump-mitchell-georgia-election/index.html) in Donald Trump’s false claims about the 2020 elections — filed papers for Ginni Thomas to create a nonprofit group of a type that ultimately benefited from the decision. Leo was one of two directors listed on a separate application to conduct business in the state of Virginia. Thomas was president. She signed it on New Year’s Eve of 2009, and Crow provided much of the initial cash (https://www.politico.com/f/?id=0000018a-2e49-d0b1-a7eb-6e5915450000). A key Leo aide, Sarah Field, would come aboard to help Thomas manage the group, which they called Liberty Central.

After Liberty Central went public, it provoked an outcry over a Supreme Court justice’s wife promoting causes like overturning Obamacare that were before her husband’s court. Leo and Thomas changed gears. His network reactivated a dormant group, the Judicial Education Project, which would go on to become a major supplier of amicus briefs before the nation’s highest court. She created a for-profit consulting business using a similar name — Liberty Consulting — that enabled her to perform consulting work for conservative activist groups.

The Judicial Education Project supplied some of her business: Documents indicate Leo ordered at least one recipient of his groups’ funds, Kellyanne Conway, to make payments to Ginni Thomas for unspecified work, according to a Washington Post story (https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/2023/05/04/leonard-leo-clarence-ginni-thomas-conway/) earlier this year.
https://www.politico.com/news/2023/09/10/ginni-thomas-leonard-leo-citizens-united-00108082

[Winehole23]

Just imagine if this was Patrick Jackson, husband of Justice Ketanji, and, say, George Soros. Rightwingers would be losing their minds.

[Ef-man]

How about that. Ginny Thomas was receiving dark money from group thar supported Citizens United ruling. :wow

Thomas did not credit Crow, Leo or the Citizens United decision for her new grassroots initiative. That year, she was paid $120,500 from Liberty Central, according to tax records.

Bitch claimed to work 60 hours a week for that $$$$. :lol

https://www.politico.com/ginni-thomas-leonard-leo-citizens-united (https://www.politico.com/news/2023/09/10/ginni-thomas-leonard-leo-citizens-united-00108082)

[Winehole23]

Oh well, legal solemnities touching corporate advertising in the last 30 days before an election are now passe'.there used to be last month limits.

2010 take.

[Winehole23]

It's not a partisan issue...

it's a free speech issue.

"well, we can have free speech, up until an election where we'll suspend for a bit. We can't have total free speech during such an important event as an election...someone might lie y'know."

...and so it goes.


It's also about overturning the will of the states and the US Congress to limit corporate participation in elections. The notion that corporate free speech and access to political process was unduly hindered before this ruling is laughable.

This ruling is a solution in search of a problem....and still is, thirteen years later.

[Ef-man]

Supreme Court Also Cucking MAGAs

New York ammunition background check to take effect tomorrow

Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor on Tuesday rejected a gun shop-owning couple seeking to block New York's background check law for ammunition purchases one day before it goes into effect.

In a paperless order, Sotomayor rejected an application for a stay of several measures under the Empire State's Concealed Carry Improvement Act, which was signed by Gov. Kathy Hochul (D-NY) last July in response to Justice Clarence Thomas's 6-3 decision striking the state's century-old restrictive gun permit regime.

[Winehole23]

Wrong thread?

[Winehole23]

there used to be last month limits.

2010 take.now you can flood the zone with bullshit.

shit is bullshit and fucked up.

[Ef-man]

Wrong thread?

Conservatives pushing against campaign reform are losing sleep as muh guns was part of their agenda and they got cucked.

Expect more push back from the MAGAs on other issues because they see walls closing in (e.g., MM).

[Winehole23]

Conservatives pushing against campaign reform are losing sleep as muh guns was part of their agenda and they got cucked.

Expect more push back from the MAGAs on other issues because they see walls closing in (e.g., MM).Topically disjunct, I don't accept your attempt to link the theme you picked, jmo.

[Ef-man]

Topically disjunct, I don't accept your attempt to link the theme you picked, jmo.

So, IYO, you believe that representatives of the gun lobby were not in with Citizen United?

[Thread]

Trump President.
Not Clinton.

[Winehole23]

So, IYO, you believe that representatives of the gun lobby were not in with Citizen United?Germane, but seems a reach. I see separate tracks here.

[Ef-man]

Germane, but seems a reach. I see separate tracks here.

In tactical sense, sure they are different. But strategically, it is the same fight and nice to see the Supreme Court justices say that 2A lobby is not all powerful.

Where there is money to be made, you will find shady deals involving politicians/judges and businessmen.

In this case, the gun lobby will most likely increase campaign funds to the politicians in their back pockets because of muh 2A business.

Sure, corporations will find ways around better campaign laws too but at least it will not be as brazen.

[Winehole23]

Treating political donations like charitable gifts.

What's the good government rationale for cloaking the identities of political megadonors trying to change the system to suit their jnterests and subsidizing their gifts?


“Created in 2012, the Bradley Impact Fund is a donor-advised fund (DAF) “aligned” with the Milwaukee-based Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation, which has a long history of conservative influence and, of late, has become a source of money for organizations pushing Republicans to change election laws. Donor-advised funds, such as the Bradley Impact Fund, collect donations from various contributors and then make often untraceable gifts to other organizations. An increasingly popular charity tool—receiving a quarter of all individual giving in the United States—DAFs offer donors ‘multiple layers of anonymity,’ explains Brendan Fischer, deputy executive director of the investigative watchdog Documented. DAFs operate like private foundations but are classified as public charities. This allows the funds to give money without the same transparency requirements. And the donors, who can recommend where their contributions should go, are still awarded the publicly subsidized tax breaks associated with charitable giving.”https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2024/04/bradly-impact-fund-michael-flynn-stephen-miller-culture-war-project-veritas-american-first-legal-cpi/

[Thread]

Treating political donations like charitable gifts.

What's the good government rationale for cloaking the identities of political megadonors trying to change the system to suit their jnterests and subsidizing their gifts?

https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2024/04/bradly-impact-fund-michael-flynn-stephen-miller-culture-war-project-veritas-american-first-legal-cpi/

Russia & America, Winester; 6 of 1>>>half dozen of the other---AKA---whatever it takes.

[Winehole23]

Obama was right, Alito was wrong. Money doesn't respect international boundaries.

1790794418137473031

[Thread]

Obama was right, Alito was wrong. Money doesn't respect international boundaries.

1790794418137473031

Hussein is one of the biggest shits to ever come out an asshole.

[Winehole23]

What's the good government rationale for this?

1798752318353236343[/url]

[Thread]

What's the good government rationale for this?

1798752318353236343[/url]

On D'Day no less. We was late, children. Russia had already been at it vs. the Nazi's for how many years, Winester? You know everything, well?

[Winehole23]

political money is free speech, but unlike you and me, dark money behind social welfare nonprofits can contribute unlimited funds to candidates without disclosure or penalty

A mysterious entity has given $1.7 million to Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey (https://www.rawstory.com/kay-ivey-tim-james-2022/)'s re-election campaign, but she won't say who's behind the record-breaking contributions.



The dark-money group Get Families Back to Work Inc. gave $750,000 to Ivey's campaign on March 31, and it was the single-largest political contribution made to a candidate for state office.

What's more, that record was matched when the same entity gave another $750,000 to the governor eight days later, before giving another $250,000 on April 28, reported AL.com (https://www.al.com/news/2022/05/17-million-of-mystery-money-finances-alabama-governors-campaign.html).

https://www.rawstory.com/get-families-back-to-work/

[Winehole23]

1352948073006313473

[Winehole23]

posted three years ago

[Winehole23]

unlimited political dark money is still free speech

[Winehole23]

Not simultaneous, so no obvious quid pro quo


The U.S. Chamber of Commerce received an $800,000 wire transfer from billionaire donor Hank Meijer days after it endorsed his son, then-Rep. Peter Meijer (R-Mich.), in a contentious 2022 primary, according to previously unreported internal emails reviewed by The Hill.

Within days of the transfer, the Chamber spent $381,000 on “Media Advertisement – Energy and Taxes – Mentioning Rep. Peter Meijer,” according to a report filed with the Federal Election Commission (FEC). link (http://https://thehill.com/lobbying/4702908-us-chamber-800k-hank-meijer-supermarket-mogul-peter-meijer/)

[Winehole23]

Both the Chamber and John Truscott, a Meijer family spokesman, insisted the donation complied with all applicable laws. But neither the Chamber nor Truscott answered specific questions about the timing of or discussion around the donation, the terms of the contribution and how that money was used.

[Winehole23]

Not simultaneous, so no obvious quid pro quo

link (http://https://thehill.com/lobbying/4702908-us-chamber-800k-hank-meijer-supermarket-mogul-peter-meijer/)

[Winehole23]

it does seem odd that individual contributions are capped at 3000, but dark money donations are notionally unlimited.

1804514558985326944https://x.com/WillySonbol/status/1804514558985326944

[Thread]

it does seem odd that individual contributions are capped at 3000, but dark money donations are notionally unlimited.

1804514558985326944https://x.com/WillySonbol/status/1804514558985326944

It's called (democracy) Winester. Good OR Bad.

tee, hee.

[Winehole23]

1808463461770227965https://x.com/DarrigoMelanie/status/1808463461770227965

[Winehole23]

1844090329722671462https://x.com/alex_sammon/status/1844090329722671462

[diego]

I actually read through this entire thread...
So many right-wing posters defended this crap, and their go-to lines were
"It's not going to change the amount corporations spend "
"It's actually going to be more transparent"
"More freedom good"

Too bad none of them came back the past ten years to comment on all the graphs showing how spending skyrocketed, all the articles about dark money funding both sides, and curiously enough nothing to show what good came from "more freedom". If anything it seems the ones with more freedom are Chinese and Saudi Arabian "investors" at the expense of American citizens, but hey they say America first a lot that's gotta count for something!

[Winehole23]

I actually read through this entire thread...
So many right-wing posters defended this crap, and their go-to lines were
"It's not going to change the amount corporations spend "
"It's actually going to be more transparent"
"More freedom good"

Too bad none of them came back the past ten years to comment on all the graphs showing how spending skyrocketed, all the articles about dark money funding both sides, and curiously enough nothing to show what good came from "more freedom". If anything it seems the ones with more freedom are Chinese and Saudi Arabian "investors" at the expense of American citizens, but hey they say America first a lot that's gotta count for something!

Citizens United had at least three main effects: it effectively legalized bribery; it put national politics beyond popular steering; it introduced unlimited dark money to state and local politics too.

As long as unlimited political money = protected political speech, democracy is screwed.

[baseline bum]

Citizens United had at least three main effects: it effectively legalized bribery; it put national politics beyond popular steering; it introduced unlimited dark money to state and local politics too.

As long as unlimited political money = protected political speech, democracy is screwed.

The 3/5 compromise and the electoral college it created ensured we never had democracy, just as the founding fathers intended. Oligarchy since Day 1.

[Winehole23]

Trump is getting propped up in the home stretch by auctioning off the West Bank to Miriam Adelson and a government post to Elon Musk, but bagging $1 billion in a few months is impressive.


https://pbs.twimg.com/media/GaF77OPWgAAIoip?format=jpg&name=900x900

[Winehole23]

1850526748170985818

https://x.com/davetroy/status/1850526748170985818

[Winehole23]

https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:s teep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F30fce57 7-f76e-4b21-86e6-7af5dbe51096_681x565.png
https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:s teep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F75d2b42 8-70de-4de4-87d4-88ff8baa725a_1682x1110.png

[Winehole23]

https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:s teep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fd0d7906 b-db82-46c2-9132-cfc0d690da53_980x444.png

https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:s teep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1b44ec9 e-30f1-416e-bf4a-71d3d60f1daf_2792x1120.png

[Winehole23]

https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:s teep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb99724c 8-35eb-4a99-86b6-21016432923f_1384x1012.png

The John Roberts Election - by Michael Podhorzer (https://www.weekendreading.net/p/the-john-roberts-election)

[Winehole23]

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/GcNxxzOWwAAKYWw?format=jpg&name=large

[Winehole23]

it's remarkable how much access to power one guy can buy


Elon Musk donated more than $250mn to Donald Trump’s election campaign, including at least $75mn in the final weeks before the vote, US electoral filings have revealed.Filings submitted on Thursday to the Federal Election Commission show that Musk donated more than $238.5mn to the America Pac, a political action committee that the Tesla chief executive himself set up and which became one of Trump’s main fundraising vehicles.

The filings show that Musk made three individual donations of $25mn to America Pac in the second half of October alone.Musk also donated $20.5mn to the pro-Trump RBG Pac, named after the late Supreme Court justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, bringing Musk’s total support for the president-elect’s campaign to more than $259mn. Musk was the sole donor to RBG Pac, according to the filings.https://www.ft.com/content/5f962d83-01d8-4a2d-9d36-a1bfed400c00

[Winehole23]

https://www.ft.com/__origami/service/image/v2/images/raw/https%3A%2F%2Fd1e00ek4ebabms.cloudfront.net%2Fprod uction%2F053db399-2b58-4ad4-8c6f-f4f92a6e9442.jpg?source=next-article&fit=scale-down&quality=highest&width=700&dpr=1

[Thread]

it's remarkable how much access to power one guy can buy

https://www.ft.com/content/5f962d83-01d8-4a2d-9d36-a1bfed400c00


https://www.ft.com/__origami/service/image/v2/images/raw/https%3A%2F%2Fd1e00ek4ebabms.cloudfront.net%2Fprod uction%2F053db399-2b58-4ad4-8c6f-f4f92a6e9442.jpg?source=next-article&fit=scale-down&quality=highest&width=700&dpr=1

He swore he would earlier this year and then MSM swore back he wouldn't.

He did. Thank Christ.

[Winehole23]

related theory, the voters haven't been realigning, political donors have


The real market for political parties is defined by major investors, who generally have good and clear reason for investing to control the state (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sovereign_state)....Blocs of major investors define the core of political parties and are responsible for most of the signals the party sends to the electorate (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_campaign).

Investment theory of party competition - Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Investment_theory_of_party_competition)

[Winehole23]

unelected Trump investor chimes in


https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:zjei2em3vjzv6xoosp7qeob3/bafkreibc33rtljgprxqwihk7n4hzipsps722eltv6ikvb5r43 wlfj6h5pm@jpeg

[Thread]

unelected Trump investor chimes in


https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:zjei2em3vjzv6xoosp7qeob3/bafkreibc33rtljgprxqwihk7n4hzipsps722eltv6ikvb5r43 wlfj6h5pm@jpeg

Johnson remains Trump's mistake, like Wray is, well, was.

I'm still flabbergasted that Wray is quitting...I'll believe it when he actually quits though.

[Winehole23]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:dwaduijo6ngdgzmir5vovzrh/bafkreif7ic2otshdia5ygmimvdmre5jrq7vfnvlqaxhtxjmb2 j4ccgy4fu@jpeg

[SnakeBoy]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:dwaduijo6ngdgzmir5vovzrh/bafkreif7ic2otshdia5ygmimvdmre5jrq7vfnvlqaxhtxjmb2 j4ccgy4fu@jpeg

So?

[ChumpDumper]

So?

Do you personally think China good now, snacks?

[Winehole23]

So?so, we can already see that Elon's quarter of a billion dollar investment in Trump is starting to pay off. remarkable deference to a mere campaign donor.

[Thread]

so, we can already see that Elon's quarter of a billion dollar investment in Trump is starting to pay off. remarkable deference to a mere campaign donor.

...and after this Board had been assured that [the money] would not be forthcoming when all was said and done,,,it came forth. Not in swag, or, half now, 1/4 later happy horseshit, but, cash, that cash/cash delivered to Trump in person. Those two had sucker punched MSM and it's beautiful.

Soros, schmoros.

[Winehole23]

that's barely coherent, man

[Thread]

that's barely coherent, man

Boiled down...Musk was for real in the and at the end. The 2 Musk/Trump had strung everyone along as to whether Musk would come to the fore (with the cash), or, get scared and run off.

The cash has been realized. Will he stay in the fore? I wouldn't bet on it. Nobody wants to get shot cept on the tv and in the movies.

And (they) still ain't fuckin' around. They made a blood oath to run Trump off 9 years ago, by whatever it takes. They've not flagged, nor failed to keep that blood oath. Hit him once and will not stop as long as they live.

Trump understands fully what's happened and why. He got 'em and won't turn loose. We all dream about behaving with our enemies like he has, but 99.9% stop after a berry patch in Pennsylvania. Not him.

[Winehole23]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_fullsize/plain/did:plc:25cztqjrqfedqg22bpoqjljr/bafkreifrornal7kxwnodi5dohgssxk75hwvoilqpjvw3d476r ivjkfttfe@jpeg

[Winehole23]

only took 15 years


It’s like there is this straight line from Citizens United to “richest man in the world buys himself unfettered access to the Treasury”

[Thread]

only took 15 years


Pelosi should be on the case. But, she fell and can't get up. WOO-HOO!!!

[Winehole23]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:s3esfogo246exeglag22eq4o/bafkreigpckmj4m7e2q25frvcugahwa4rafhlea6vyeieobmui oqfsiyy4u@jpeg

[Winehole23]

When Citizens United turned ten, in 2020, the political money-tracker Open Secrets reported (https://www.opensecrets.org/news/reports/a-decade-under-citizens-united) on what the ruling had wrought. Super PACs—the non-party committees created to legally raise cash in unlimited amounts to independently promote issues and candidates—spent $4.5 billion over the decade (up from $750 million over the previous twenty years).


The major players of the new era, it turned out, were not corporations. They were millionaires and billionaires. “The 10 most generous donors and their spouses injected $1.2 billion into federal elections over the last decade,” Open Secrets found.


Muller wrote then that a new Gilded Age was upon us, one in which wealthy donors—most of them old, white, and male—unleashed their money to manipulate politicians, reward them if they were compliant, and sink them if they were not. “The court’s naïve view of our electoral process set the stage for 10 years of billions of dollars corrupting our politics and dictating national policy on everything from the cost of prescription drugs to climate change to gun violence,”



THE CORRUPTION OF FIVE YEARS AGO is almost trivial compared with the corruption of today. Gridlock and dysfunction are still with us, blocking many priorities supported by voters, but now “there is nothing that isn’t for sale,” Muller told me, and reeled off a few choice outrages: Trump’s personal investment (https://www.nytimes.com/2025/03/07/technology/trump-crypto-summit.html) in crypto and public steps (https://www.nytimes.com/2025/03/06/technology/trump-crypto-reserve-executive-order.html) that will enrich him, his family, and wealthy friends; an unprecedented thirteen billionaires (https://abcnews.go.com/US/trump-tapped-unprecedented-13-billionaires-top-administration-roles/story?id=116872968) in Trump’s cabinet, with all the potential that entails for conflicts of interest and insulation from the impact of their policies; and Musk’s “unfettered access” to the government and the private data of tens of millions, as he fires, freezes, and cancels his way through one agency after another, allegedly to slash costs.


At the same time, Musk himself is flush with government grants and contracts, and is aggressively pursuing more of them—from the Federal Aviation Administration (where he has insinuated (https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/elon-musk/elon-musk-starlink-growing-footprint-federal-government-rcna195400) his Starlink internet system into its operations although the FAA’s existing Verizon contract doesn’t expire until 2038) to the Commerce Department’s $42 billion rural broadband access program (which rewrote (https://www.cnn.com/2025/03/06/business/musks-starlink-federal-program/index.html) its rules last week to make Starlink eligible).


The root of this corruption debacle, of course and alas, is Musk spending nearly $300 million (https://www.cnn.com/2025/02/01/politics/elon-musk-2024-election-spending-millions/index.html) to get Trump elected in the first place. Now he’s trying to purchase (https://www.thebulwark.com/p/elon-musk-brad-schimel-wisconsin-supreme-court-election-gerrymandering) a state supreme court seat in Wisconsin, and his fellow billionaires are pouring money (https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/mar/05/billionaires-funding-republicans?link_id=2&can_id=84fbd08849e93cf2fcefcad570045cc8&source=email-release-democrats-flip-another-state-legislative-seat-with-special-election-wins-in-connecticut-2&email_referrer=email_2643956&email_subject=in-the-states-billionaires-are-bankrolling-republicans-at-the-state-level) into state legislative races in Arizona, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Wisconsin. What’s next, local school boards (https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/desantis-florida-school-board-endorsements-election-rcna56423)?
https://www.thebulwark.com/p/the-road-from-citizens-united-to-trump-musk-and-corruption-campaign-finance-supreme-court

[Winehole23]

.back in 2008, donations over $10 million made up just 4% of contributions for Republican campaigns. But in 2024, they made up fully 56% —& of a much larger pie. Those mega-donors paid just $58 million in 2008, but last year they paid $2.472 billion, almost 2.5 times what they spent in 2020."https://prospect.org/power/2025-03-25-existential-threat-ultra-billionaires-elon-musk/

[Winehole23]

Musk has spent ~$20 million dollars on the upcoming Wisconsin election


https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:63yy7oaa2cjnznbvwgkr6yu4/bafkreievg5m5qwcaih44n6ew4upuh6f2thsly6mwy4qhhan3o cxg45sosi@jpeg

[Thread]

Musk has spent ~$20 million dollars on the upcoming Wisconsin election


https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:63yy7oaa2cjnznbvwgkr6yu4/bafkreievg5m5qwcaih44n6ew4upuh6f2thsly6mwy4qhhan3o cxg45sosi@jpeg

He's got it. He's the richest man in the world.

[Winehole23]

Buying political power for himself and his corrupt buddies, I guess money is the only political free speech that's unchallenged now in the USA

[Winehole23]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:j5hxppoqwtnzyltkyht2msjf/bafkreif2ktvmses754slu76weq2nd7drwjkhvrnjxzgs6byqt lgiguzs6u@jpeghttps://slate.com/news-and-politics/2025/03/elon-musk-wisconsin-campaign-finance-billionaire-donors-money-politics.html

[Winehole23]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:oyijun4tunao777bpfxlpxvr/bafkreiav7j6xscyzi6l3lqubojr5e6bwazqvcia2mgozzxdno mowke3yum@jpeg

[Winehole23]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_fullsize/plain/did:plc:on5oeywiqx32fh2zau473wz6/bafkreigluqxkfzpxzrgbvgn7cnimrcye6flb2yj4t4sjfmjzz ekcqveuda@jpeg

[Thread]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_fullsize/plain/did:plc:on5oeywiqx32fh2zau473wz6/bafkreigluqxkfzpxzrgbvgn7cnimrcye6flb2yj4t4sjfmjzz ekcqveuda@jpeg

- "Prove it."

- "Shane" - "Shane"

[Thread]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:oyijun4tunao777bpfxlpxvr/bafkreiav7j6xscyzi6l3lqubojr5e6bwazqvcia2mgozzxdno mowke3yum@jpeg

And you all thought he was just funnin' about supporting Trump.
tee, hee.

[Winehole23]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:it4vfrn3hgrb3hsvvwfltqqa/bafkreif2lpqc7h7kjqnk4ogjolfzirrijz4v7bqn6rszvgsie 44ahimvru@jpeg

[Thread]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:it4vfrn3hgrb3hsvvwfltqqa/bafkreif2lpqc7h7kjqnk4ogjolfzirrijz4v7bqn6rszvgsie 44ahimvru@jpeg

"likely"

tee, hee.

[SnakeBoy]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_fullsize/plain/did:plc:25cztqjrqfedqg22bpoqjljr/bafkreifrornal7kxwnodi5dohgssxk75hwvoilqpjvw3d476r ivjkfttfe@jpeg

Biden had 'em, Trump took 'em back...and then some

[Winehole23]

Biden had 'em, Trump took 'em back...and then someYeah, I know.i've been drawing attention to this for 14 years

At a certain point quantity becomes it's own quality

[Winehole23]

We're talking about orders of magnitude more $$$ since 2010

[Winehole23]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_fullsize/plain/did:plc:p2flsoioncu7cewizv5g6mpi/bafkreib76txjf5ejv3twgjvt3rxla6i5catezyoeszh5ag52y abjrjipku@jpeg


https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:e6n7jxtu2qrhwvp3j6ib6sq6/bafkreifrnibw4jaywqdoxmxygjyuiyq356t4hadn7u34usfjt qab534qpq@jpegthe point isn't the political orientation of the donors, it's that elections have more and more become spending contests on toxic advertising

[Thread]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_fullsize/plain/did:plc:p2flsoioncu7cewizv5g6mpi/bafkreib76txjf5ejv3twgjvt3rxla6i5catezyoeszh5ag52y abjrjipku@jpeg

the point isn't the political orientation of the donors, it's that elections have more and more become spending contests on toxic advertising

& who wouldn't contest for a spot in government where monumental slush funds are abundant as Musk has ID'ed. Where you can enter a Government Position with nothing and be a multimillionaire within a few years on a salary of less than $150k annually.

[Winehole23]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:rogqxhzq6vy54nbuy4n6rwyd/bafkreicjjqmng4hwcivlmpqmgctknonjo5yarjt5j2ul6woa7 bbixkxvri@jpeg

[Winehole23]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:kypbxp7rhw7q2dfa4fr7f6i6/bafkreiaukntabfi264q6f6rjdcbe5rhqxwpmzzja2sktiukrf i7pomt7wu@jpeg

[Winehole23]

"paid protesters and out of state agitators"

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:4usmserhjqkvhldgedfjb3jw/bafkreicmp6fojo6olqp5hroqnfldqfezdkcrjkgk3wea72u7e 3o7arv3bq@jpeg

[Thread]

"paid protesters and out of state agitators"

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:4usmserhjqkvhldgedfjb3jw/bafkreicmp6fojo6olqp5hroqnfldqfezdkcrjkgk3wea72u7e 3o7arv3bq@jpeg

It's worked for you fellows with Tesla, nary reason we can't use it for Wisconsin.

[Winehole23]

it does seem odd that individual contributions are capped at 3000, but dark money donations are notionally unlimited.

1804514558985326944https://x.com/WillySonbol/status/1804514558985326944

[SnakeBoy]

"paid protesters and out of state agitators"

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:4usmserhjqkvhldgedfjb3jw/bafkreicmp6fojo6olqp5hroqnfldqfezdkcrjkgk3wea72u7e 3o7arv3bq@jpeg

Whatever it takes

[SnakeBoy]

https://www.msn.com/en-us/politics/government/tesla-is-suing-to-open-dealerships-in-wisconsin-the-state-where-elon-musk-is-spending-heavily-to-influence-judicial-elections/ar-AA1BMroh

[Winehole23]

https://www.msn.com/en-us/politics/government/tesla-is-suing-to-open-dealerships-in-wisconsin-the-state-where-elon-musk-is-spending-heavily-to-influence-judicial-elections/ar-AA1BMrohSo?

[Winehole23]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:2rrp7amblhg3xoly5n5huiqv/bafkreig7ji2bdawz7cu6wpct6cvxfvpwkaj6qtfymoqot6rhf lolrip6f4@jpeg

[Thread]

^^^
But ya's beat Musk!!!

[Winehole23]

v1UODyy-jng

[Winehole23]

Trumplandia wants the shackles on election money completely removed


The Solicitor General won't defend (http://https://bsky.app/profile/johnpelwood.bsky.social/post/3lpkiz6avlk2d) the federal statute that limits the amount of money that a political party can spend on an election campaign in coordination with a candidate, saying it violates the First Amendment. Recommends #SCOTUS grant review, appoint amicus to defend law

[Winehole23]

https://rooseveltinstitute.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/billionaire-spending-citizens-united.png

[Winehole23]

While the 2024 election cycle set new records for billionaire spending, it did so in step with a broader trend. As Figure 1 shows, presidential elections have seen steadily rising spending from the ultra-wealthy for more than a decade. At the same time, the interests of the most affluent citizens and special interest groups have come to dominate policymaking, while the preferences of the average citizen have comparatively little discernable impact on policy outcomes (Gilens and Page 2014 (https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/perspectives-on-politics/article/abs/testing-theories-of-american-politics-elites-interest-groups-and-average-citizens/62327F513959D0A304D4893B382B992B)).


How did billionaires come to wield such outsized influence in our political system? This new era of unprecedented political spending by the ultra-wealthy can be traced back to the Supreme Court’s 2010 ruling in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, which allowed unlimited money to pour into elections. Over 80 percent of the total amount spent by billionaires during the 2024 election cycle was spent through channels that were prohibited prior to Citizens United,while overall billionaire spending in elections has multiplied by a factor of 163 since the ruling (Tashman and Rice 2025 (https://americansfortaxfairness.org/billionaires-buying-elections-theyve-come-to-collect/)). Meanwhile, over the same period of time, American democracy has been in decline. Public satisfaction with the way democracy is working in the US has reached record lows (Jones 2025 (https://news.gallup.com/poll/655220/satisfaction-democracy-edges-record-low.aspx)), and experts now classify the US as a “flawed” rather than “full” democracy (The Economist 2024 (https://www.economist.com/graphic-detail/2024/03/21/why-america-is-a-flawed-democracy)).
FIGURE 2
https://rooseveltinstitute.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Figure-2.jpghttps://rooseveltinstitute.org/publications/citizens-united-15-years-later/

[Winehole23]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:ayzqp3abh3d737rt6kgnhwrl/bafkreihhsbdhqqsqoyobellpohfpuabalmmxomuakoudojupa kpxzavjky@jpeghttps://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/interactive/2025/top-20-billionaires-american-elections/

[Winehole23]

.

[Winehole23]

El0n exfiltrated our personal data and compromised US government IT too

Hope he gets a hanging jury

Those three months or so El0n was in charge of OPM, Treasury payments and the GSA were cray


only took 15 years


It’s like there is this straight line from Citizens United to “richest man in the world buys himself unfettered access to the Treasury”

[Winehole23]

(without Musk giving ~$290 million to Trump in the summer/fall of 2024, that doesn't happen)

[Winehole23]

half a billion AI spend in the midterm elections at least

"massive returns by buying government outright"


https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_fullsize/plain/did:plc:nztbvvo2gl4227zuxjf7gog3/bafkreiawzrhrviu4z4q2s3ykdc5jdnv2jotyxh5xf27lvvx6c o7y2jbpf4@jpeghttps://prospect.org/2026/02/04/2026-primaries-spending-aipac-analilia-mejia-tom-malinowski/

[Winehole23]

in 2008 the figure was 0.3%



https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_fullsize/plain/did:plc:z6rujpf4u56jfie7aqic2nfg/bafkreih75ebqco2hqjyecowbqop2ctt6gzp3k7uhsbi2575fj tomjzvgcm

[Winehole23]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:4l72x6k3oe44kztmnrgeaklt/bafkreiehfhdyzqtmzltmjjvalmseqn6re2hmz2mycuwypdbps n2xmo2fri

[Winehole23]

Corporations, partnerships, trusts, limited liability companies, and other “artificial entities” have the right to vote in Delaware elections under some circumstances, a judge said in a novel ruling Tuesday.

https://news.bloomberglaw.com/esg/corporations-have-the-right-to-vote-in-delaware-town-judge-says

[Winehole23]

radical stuff

[Winehole23]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:svawqo4jxobyyuqmixplvcux/bafkreibixog7f2tcgerb2luaumswsnl5opfdf2hk7jdvhnoem l5ukzctge