This is the web version of ‘Heading to the White House’, Morning Express’ weekly newsletter about the elections in the United States. If you want to subscribe for free, you can do so atthis link.
While Donald Trump hangs his medal – and his apron – for working a quarter of an hour at a McDonald’s, the richest man in the world, Elon Musk, does everything possible to make the Republican president. The South African-born tycoon has committed his time and money to campaigning for the former president. It is not known how much will be spent on it, but until September alone he had already contributed 75 million dollars to his America PAC organization. The latest novelty, on the edge of the law, is his idea of raffling off one million dollars a day (920,000 euros) to encourage participation in the elections by the conservative electorate. If Trump wins the presidency, he will head a commission charged with drastically reforming the Administration. There is little doubt that the regulatory and supervisory bodies that sometimes keep you in line will be in their sights, so in the end it could be a very profitable investment.
There are many strange things in the draw. It doesn’t look like there are bases or a notary to attest to the cleanliness of the process. In theory, the drawing is between all those who have signed a declaration of support for the First and Second Amendments of the United States Constitution, which enshrine freedom of expression and the right to keep and bear arms that, in their imagination, They are in grave danger if Trump does not win. But, is the million dollars really raffled among all the signatories? It seems a little strange that the first two winners, in Harrisburg and Pittsburgh, were present in the audience at the rallies that Musk was giving. Too much coincidence.
The problem, however, is not that the draw is a little rigged. The point is that to participate (just like to attend Elon Musk’s rallies) you have to sign the declaration and that to sign the declaration you have to register as a voter (the first days only in Pennsylvania and then in any of the decisive States) . Federal law prohibits paying voters to vote or register to vote. It is considered a crime with penalties of up to $10,000 and up to five years in prison. A Department of Justice manual notes that this includes “anything that has monetary value, including cash, liquor,lottery possibilities and social benefits such as food stamps.”
Musk plays, at the very least, on the edge of the law. As he handed over the first check he said: “You don’t need to vote.” But the rule also excludes incentives like that to register to vote. The way the tycoon tries to find that loophole is to raffle the money among those who sign the petition (although to sign it you have to be a registered voter). Some electoral experts consider that to be illegal; others are not so clear.
The richest man in the world, in fact, had already been offering for days to reward $47 (the next president will be the 47th) to anyone who convinced a new registered voter to sign the declaration of support for freedom of expression. and the right to keep and bear arms. Initially, thus, it took a second degree of distance. It did not pay the signer or the new registered voter but rather the person who introduced them, just as other organizations pay workers to promote voter registration. Then, perhaps due to the lack of success of the initial proposal, he raised the reward to $100 and, in another step towards the frontier of the law, decided to pay both the signer and the person who presented it.
Given the worse implementation of the Republican Party on the ground (the Democratic apparatus is much more greased in that sense), Musk has also been offering salaries of $30 an hour to those who campaign door-to-door for Trump. That is certainly within the law, especially since its interpretation was made more flexible and gave rise to what has been called “dirty money” in campaigns.
Beyond the million dollar raffle, Elon Musk’s rallies are a bit delirious. After an initial intervention, Musk submits to questions from the attendees, which can range from plans to colonize Mars to advice for starting a business, including, of course, the most common topics of Trumpism.
The businessman is American, but came to the United States as a student after acquiring Canadian nationality. In recent weeks, an interview with him and his brother Kimbal has gone viral, in which he said that the investors to whom they were presenting their first project were shocked when they discovered that they were both in the United States at that time as “illegal immigrants.” “It was a gray area,” Elon replied, at his side, in that interview. It has never been completely clarified, but the gray area probably consisted of the fact that he had not finished processing the new graduate visa when the student visa expired.
Now, the great fear that Musk proclaims is that a large number of immigrants will obtain American nationality – just like he did in his day – and that they will vote for the Democratic Party and the United States will become a one-party regime. “I see a deliberate attempt to import as many people as possible into swing states like Pennsylvania to make sure the United States becomes a one-party country,” even though “the fake mainstream media” tries to hide it, Musk said at a rally. from last week. Musk thus once again embraced the theory of the great replacement, one of the favorite conspiracy stories of the American extreme right. “Kamala is just a puppet of a larger machine. “If the machine works for another four years, there will be no meaningful elections in the future,” he added.
The consequence of this is that there will continue to be demanding regulations – excessive, in his opinion. Not only is that bad for your business, but you won’t be able to test your rockets as much as you’d like. “Mars will be impossible. “We will forever be confined to Earth,” he said. So to get to Mars, the richest man in the world tries to buy himself an election.
More news about the US elections
Before you go, here are some recommendations of articles that we have published in the last week and that you cannot miss:
United States: culture before the elections of the century. From the political essay of the Washington bubble to ‘Civil War’ or ‘Megalopolis’, from Beyoncé’s songs that play at rallies to the genre of presidential memoirs, in this special the ‘Babelia’ experts analyze books and comics, films, exhibitions or video games to understand the complex cultural battles that impact elections in which the world is gambling.
Why the United States is a flawed democracy.Obstacles to voting, especially for minorities. The overrepresentation of sparsely populated communities. A dysfunctional Congress. The role of dirty money in promoting applicants and candidates. The American democratic system, celebrated as the longest and most stable in the world, is far from perfect.
North Carolina, vote among hoaxes after the catastrophe. The worst hurricane in two decades in the United States devastated a quarter of the State and has created serious logistical complications in a very close electoral campaign, while fake news proliferates in the affected area.
Shopping in Trump Town: Journey with conceptual artist Miralda to the center of the Trumpian universe. It is one of the most famous candidate merchandising stores in the United States. In this old church in a Virginia town, the cult of the leader is a sarcastic and conspiratorial business.
Is Trump the favorite? This is what the latest polls say.In just ten days, the prediction markets have catapulted the Republican as the favorite. But caution is warranted with this information: the election between Trump and Harris remains open and very close.