Elon Musk is donating a lot more money to the GOP than he is to the Dems

He gave nearly $90,000 to the GOP since the start of 2017.
 By 
Keith Wagstaff
 on 
Elon Musk is donating a lot more money to the GOP than he is to the Dems
Elon Musk, who is a very independent rich man. Credit: Getty Images

Someone send a submarine to rescue Elon Musk's reputation.

It turns out the Tesla and SpaceX CEO has donated seven times as much to money to Republicans than Democrats since the beginning of 2017, according to Federal Election Commission data reviewed by HuffPost.

Overall, Musk gave $88,900 to Republicans and $13,300 to Democrats, including more than $50,000 to a fundraising committee run by House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, a California Republican who doesn't exactly hold the most enlightened views on climate change.

That's pretty strange company for Musk to keep, considering how deeply he purports to care about our climate.

What's Musk's reason for donating so much money to the GOP? Days ago, the CEO attempted to defend himself against reports he gave nearly $40,000 to Protect the House, a political action committee that's trying to maintain Republican control of the House, by explaining that the recipients of his donations would be "willing to listen" to him.

Yes, without those donations, Republican lawmakers would see Elon Musk's name come up on their phones, roll their eyes, and ignore the call of a man worth around $20 billion.

But now Musk has access. He can call up Republicans and say, "Hey, maybe don't separate small children from their families?" Apparently, that's a better way to spend your money than, you know, helping the campaigns of Democrats who might replace them.

If the Democrats lose the midterm elections, it would be an absolute disaster for pretty much everyone except men like Elon Musk. The GOP has shown no desire to actually stop Trump's train of incompetence and corruption, because, well, tax cuts and regulatory rollbacks. And if it keeps going at its current pace, no amount of humanitarian spending can undo the damage the party can unleash with another four years in power.

Oh, and in case you were wondering, Elon Musk, in the grand tradition of wealthy men who love their money but don't want to feel bad about it, classifies himself as an "independent."

Figures.

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Keith Wagstaff

Keith Wagstaff is an assistant editor at Mashable and a terrible Settlers of Catan player. He has written for TIME, The Wall Street Journal Magazine, NBC News, The Village Voice, VICE, GQ and New York Magazine, among many other reputable and not-so-reputable publications. After nearly a decade in New York City, he now lives in his native Los Angeles.

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