On Wednesday, Propublica reported that Donald Trump directly lobbied Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe over a casino license for gambling magnate Sheldon Adelson. The bluntness of Trump’s attempt to secure the deal for the Republican billionaire shocked Abe, as Trump didn’t just inquire about the license but insisted that Abe should “strongly consider” inking a deal with one of Trump’s big money supporters.
One day later, Politico reports that Adelson likes the kind of attention he’s getting from Republicans. And he’s ready to tip the Party for their service.
Las Vegas casino mogul Sheldon Adelson is pumping tens of millions of dollars more into Republican Party coffers in an 11th-hour push to save their congressional majorities, according to two senior Republicans familiar with the donation.
The money that Adelson is pushing into a pair of GOP SuperPACs will likely make him the largest donor for either party in the 2018 midterms. This last minute surge comes on top of more than $55 million that Adelson has spent in this cycle to keep the House and Senate in Republican hands.
Way back in 1997, education secretary to be Betsy DeVos had some comments on claims that she was buying government contracts and influence with investments in campaigns and conservative infrastructure.
DeVos: I have decided to stop taking offense at the suggestion that we are buying influence. Now I simply concede the point.
Not much has changed—except that with dark money and Citizens United helping things along, the problem of the wealthy buying influence in Washington is worse than ever. And Republican donors are giving more than ever. They know they own Trump. They know they own the Republicans. All they want from you is silence.
The only thing holding them back is small donations from ordinary people reminding billionaire swamp monsters that they still don’t own America.