Venture capitalist and early PayPal executive David Sachs has a significant amount of money to put in early in the 2022 midterm election campaign and wants to figure out the best way to increase the Republican vote margin. rice field.
So he called Caroline Wren for advice, according to a person familiar with the matter.
Wren is a veteran Republican fundraiser who raised money for former President Donald Trump’s failed 2020 campaign.she she too reportedly Hundreds of supporters of the then-President helped raise funds to support a pro-Trump rally before storming the Capitol on January 6, 2021.
Mr. Sachs asked Mr. Wren how the Republican Party plans to fight off well-funded Democratic nonprofits, according to a person with direct knowledge of the call. For example, some of these nonprofits are funded by billionaire George Soros. Missosazai told Sachs that Republicans are lagging behind in building and funding strong nonprofit networks that could boost them in the election, according to the person. These and others who appeared in this article spoke on the condition of anonymity regarding private matters.
Sachs donated more than $1 million during the 2022 election campaign, with many of his large checks going to political action committees that support Republicans, according to Federal Election Commission records. Sachs also helped create a 501(c)(4) nonprofit to exercise political influence, Puck previously reported. report.
These moves, along with recent support for Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’ presidential campaign (including hosting a candidate kickoff event on Twitter), show how Mr. Sachs is striving to become a Republican kingmaker. indicates whether or not Peter Thiel has been a major donor in past election cycles and has worked with Sachs. PayPal Back in the dotcom era, he said he would not endorse individual candidates in the 2024 election.
Sachs also supports Democrats. Recently, he donated and hosted a fundraiser for California Democrat Rep. Law Khanna, who represents Silicon Valley. Khanna’s office did not respond to Khanna’s interview, but the senator said in a statement to CNBC that he would “stop defense contractors from going up in price and protect the rights of the American people to the First Amendment.” I agree with Mr. Sachs on the point that we will protect.
But with Democratic President Joe Biden in the White House, Sachs positions himself as a vocal pusher for the Republican Party heading into the 2024 election cycle.
The investor has a long history in technology and entertainment. After retiring from PayPal, Microsoft acquired his $1.2 billion enterprise in 2012. He collaborated with him to found platform Yammer, and then to Zenefits, a talent-related startup during the company’s difficult times. served as CEO. He also produced the 2005 film Thank You for Smoking, about three lobbyists working in the tobacco, alcohol and firearms industries.
But Mr. Sachs never had the clout or money of Mr. Thiel or his friend Elon Musk, a former PayPal executive.
“Yes, there is a man who has been doing great things and has lived in the shadow of a noisy group of people, but he – like many of us – thinks the government can do better. So he , finding a clear path and enjoying celebrity,” a veteran venture capital executive told CNBC.
Sachs did not respond to CNBC’s email requesting answers to a dozen questions. A DeSantis campaign spokesman did not respond to a request for comment before the publication.
The driving force behind DeSantis
Anti-Trump sentiment in the tech community may be the driving force behind Sachs and fellow venture capitalist Joe Lonsdale’s support for DeSantis, according to Julie Samuels, president of tech advocacy group Tech:NYC. .
“There’s still a sense in a lot of the tech industry that you can’t be a Trump supporter in ‘polite’ circles,” Samuels said. DeSantis’s collaboration with tech executives could help win younger voters.
“And if DeSantis is involved with any part of the tech community, he’s positioning himself younger and prettier than Trump. That’s what he considers his territory. By the way.” It’s from here,” said Samuels.
With the first primary just months away, early preliminary polls show Mr. Trump with a clear lead over Mr. DeSantis by a wide margin.of latest The former president trails the governor of Florida by 34 points, according to Morning Consult’s primary follow-up.
Sachs’ activism in 2022 included a donation of just over $300,000 to the Purple Good Government PAC, according to FEC records. The group is now sent $100,000 To PAC, friends of Ron DeSantis who helped DeSantis run for re-election in Florida. Sachs also donated $50,000 to pro-DeSantis groups in the last cycle, according to Florida campaign records.
The FEC does not track donations by donors to non-profit advocacy groups that can also support candidates. Last year, Sachs launched a 501(c)(4) nonprofit called Purple Action, Inc., which “seeks to influence the world of politics and policy.” pack report.
According to the bag pack, serves as one of the Group’s directors. The nonprofit is not required to publicly disclose donors.
Relationship between PAC and Lobbying Activities
FEC records indicate that the Purple Good Government PAC is still active and may eventually endorse DeSantis as a presidential candidate. Sachs and his wife were the greatest personal contributors to PAC.
The group has quietly assembled a team of influential consultants, including some with Republican ties.
PAC also paid a little-known limited liability company called Bay Strategies. Purple Good Government paid Bay Strategies about $16,000 for “consulting services” and “political strategy consulting” for the 2022 cycle, according to FEC filings. These filings do not state who runs the LLC.
According to transaction records obtained by CNBC, two of the consultants who helped launch Bay Strategies, Stewart Hall and Jill Kendrick, have been linked to strong lobbying Crossroads Strategies and the public.・The company is said to have a relationship with Policy Holding.
Crossroads co-founder Hall, who was once an aide to former Alabama Republican Senator Richard Shelby, has lobbied through the organization to major corporations, including: Altria Group, AT&T, boeing, general electric So does Hearst Corporation, according to the nonpartisan tracking group OpenSecrets. A 2016 company registration form filed in Washington, D.C., lists Hall as the “governor” of Bay Strategies.
Hall is also CEO of Public Policy Holding. The company claims to be “a group of leading advisory firms specializing in government relations, public relations, strategic research, grassroots influence and digital campaign solutions.” Advisors include Crossroads Strategies and Forbes Tate Partners, according to the firm’s website.
Kendrick, former chief financial officer of Crossroads Strategies and now chief operating officer of Public Policy Holding, said that Bay Strategies’ 2016 business registration form, according to the paper. signed as “a governor or an authorized person.” shape.
Hall said Kevin McGran, a lobbyist at government giant Forbes Tate Partners, also has ties to Bay Strategies.
McGran, who also worked for former Ohio Republican Speaker of the House John Boehner, “helps Mr. Sachs primarily with machinery and compliance,” he said. pack. According to OpenSecrets, McGran is currently a registered lobbyist for Forbes-Tate, representing AT&T, the Association of Independent Mortgage Professionals and United Wholesale Mortgage.
According to OpenSecrets, Hall has lobbied on issues related to banking, aerospace, homeland security, telecommunications and trade this year. According to OpenSecrets, McGran has worked on issues related to media information, finance, telecommunications and consumer product security.
Other Forbes-Tate lobbyists represent Musk’s space exploration company, SpaceX. According to a CNBC report, Musk was PayPal’s chief executive alongside Thiel when Sachs worked there, and Musk stepped in to help run Twitter after last year’s $44 billion acquisition. I brought in Mr. Sachs.
Mr. Hall said in an email that he referred questions about the Bay strategy to Mr. McGran. ”Involved in that work with the Purple Good Government PAC. Kendrick and McGran did not respond to requests for comment.
in the shadow of the valley
Sachs could help fill the funding hole left by Thiel, a billionaire investor and early Facebook backer who was a key Trump backer in 2016. .
According to OpenSecret, Thiel donated $35 million to Republican causes during the 2022 election, making him the 10th-ranked donor in the country.
The giant of Silicon Valley said in a book: recently In a podcast with conservative commentator Barry Weiss, he said he was not involved in supporting candidates in the 2024 election. Still, Thiel said in the same interview that DeSantis could be a great president and that he would endorse him in the general election if he becomes the Republican nominee.
When CNBC asked if he would endorse DeSantis, a spokesperson for Thiel told CNBC, “Peter had no intention of financially supporting the candidate in 2024.”
Sachs has already taken notice of his network of tech communities, including Musk, with an “all-in podcast” featuring Sachs and fellow tech investors Jason Karakanis, David Friedberg and Chamas Palihapitiya. ” to help promote preferred candidates.
Sachs hosted a Twitter Space event featuring Musk and DeSantis when the governor of Florida officially announced his candidacy in May. Although the event was delayed due to technical issues, DeSantis’ team says he was ultimately able to raise just over $8 million in his first 24 hours of the campaign.
Sachs has also opened up his sphere of influence to other politicians. “All In His Podcast” featured Democratic presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Kennedy’s episode has over 500,000 views on his YouTube, making it the top episode of the year.
Before President Kennedy appeared on the podcast, Sachs said on an earlier show. episode He said he was “supporting” a stronger candidate than Biden. Recent CNN poll Kennedy has 20% support among Democratic and Democratic-leaning voters. The same poll found Mr. Biden’s approval rating among that demographic was 60%.
“All In” staffers also discussed the possibility of including Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley on the show.and sack Said In a recent episode, he said he planned to ask the DeSantis campaign for a governor of Florida to be interviewed.
Podcast co-host Karakanis suggested during the episode that a donation by Sachs to help DeSantis should help secure an interview with the governor of Florida.
“Hey hey hey! I deposited 150 dimes. Bring him here,” Karakanis told Sachs.