When American billionaires campaign for voters

"Shark" goes to battle

Billionaire Mark Cuban appeared at a campaign rally for US Vice President Kamala Harris in Wisconsin on October 17 and is scheduled to hold another event to rally support for the Democratic candidate in Arizona on October 19, before moving to Michigan on October 20.

Billionaire Mark Cuban speaks at Harris' event in Wisconsin on October 17.

At the event on October 17, Mr. Cuban criticized former President Donald Trump's plan to tax 60% of goods imported from China as a "crazy idea" that would hurt American consumers more than China, according to Reuters. The famous "shark" in the investment program Shark Tank in the US said that Mr. Trump was wrong to believe that China would pay for that plan. "He also said that Mexico would pay for the wall (border). Will Mexico pay for that wall?", Mr. Cuban asked and received a unanimous "no" from the crowd.

Also on October 17, billionaire Elon Musk began a five-night campaign for Mr. Trump in Pennsylvania, the battleground state considered the most important. "I have never been active in politics but now I am involved because the future of America and civilization is at stake," Mr. Musk said at his first solo event. In his speech, the Tesla boss spent a lot of time talking about border security and illegal immigration. The billionaire said that if the Democrats control the White House for another four years, they will "legalize many illegal immigrants in swing states until there are no more swing states," according to the Times of India newspaper. Ms. Harris's campaign has not commented on this statement.

Trump calls on military to deal with 'domestic enemies' on election day

Expensive elections

Mr. Cuban and Mr. Musk are two of several powerful billionaires trying to influence this year’s White House race in favor of their preferred candidate. Mr. Musk has donated nearly $75 million to political action groups supporting Mr. Trump. Mr. Cuban, by contrast, is not a political donor.

Axios cited a recent analysis by the OpenSecrets research group showing that the money pumped in by wealthy donors is expected to make this year's race the most expensive federal election in history with a total spending of at least $15.9 billion, breaking the record of $15.1 billion in 2020.

Since Ms. Harris became the Democratic nominee to replace President Joe Biden, support for the Democrats has skyrocketed, and the vice president's campaign has raised more than $1 billion to date. However, according to The Washington Post , most of the top 50 donors are Republicans. Other notable supporters of Mr. Trump and the Republicans include billionaire Timothy Mellon, the Uline shipping company founders Dick and Liz Uihlein, and Miriam Adelson, wife of casino magnate Sheldon Adelson. Meanwhile, supporting Ms. Harris and the Democrats are billionaire Mike Bloomberg and LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman and his wife Michelle Yee.

More than 9 million people have voted early.

As of October 17, more than 9 million voters had cast early ballots in the 2024 US presidential election, according to updated data from The New York Times. The figure includes people who voted in person and by mail.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/khi-cac-ti-phu-my-van-dong-cu-tri-18524101822584453.htm