Donald Trump boosted his campaign coffers Thursday night with a San Francisco fundraiser event hosted by a pair of tech investors, reportedly adding another $12 million to his war chest for the November election.
Venture capitalists David Sacks and Chamath Palihapitiya held the event at Sacks’ mansion in the upscale Pacific Heights neighborhood, according to Reuters. Attendees at the gathering were said to have included several notable cryptocurrency entrepreneurs—as well as a couple of the top contenders hoping to become Trump’s running mate.
Republican National Committeewoman Harmeet Dhillon claimed on X that the event—where tickets were reported to cost up to $300,000—had raised $12 million. She said attendees included “crypto leaders” including some from the Coinbase cryptocurrency exchange, as well as Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, the twins behind the Gemini crypto exchange but probably best known for their claims that Mark Zuckerberg stole their idea to create Facebook.
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New York Times journalist Teddy Schleifer, who reported on the fundraiser, cited a source saying that, at one point during the fundraiser, Trump joked the Winklevoss twins “should be credited for *actually* founding Facebook.”
Dhillon similarly wrote that the former president “credits them for Facebook” and went on to address “‘Pocahontas’ going after crypto,” referring to Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), who has repeatedly expressed concerns over the risks that the crypto industry poses to investors and crypto’s use in illegal activities.
When Sacks spoke at the event, he thanked Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH), saying “this all started with J.D. Vance calling and asking if we could host an event for President Trump,” according to a Reuters source. The news agency reported that Vance—thought to be among the leading candidates hoping to be chosen as Trump’s potential next vice president—helped to organize the fundraiser.
North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, another leading candidate in the Republican veepstakes, was also seen entering Sacks’ home.
Despite being considered a deep-blue city, San Francisco is seeing some wealthy residents in tech turning away from President Joe Biden and his policies ahead of his looming electoral showdown with Trump.
In a lengthy X statement Thursday, Sacks addressed the fundraiser and the “four main issues” that led him to endorse Trump’s presidential campaign. They included Biden’s handling of the economy, the war in Ukraine, and illegal immigration. Sacks also slammed the use of what he called “lawfare” in the criminal prosecutions of Trump.
Trump was apparently so taken with the diatribe that he decided to share it in full on his Truth Social platform Friday morning. X owner Elon Musk also seemingly impressed, replying to Sacks’ post with: “Thoughtful.”
Sacks is a close friend of Musk, with Bloomberg describing the fundraiser for Trump as a “a public showing of support from folks who have been known to have Musk’s ear.” The outlet reported last week that Trump is set to take part in a town hall-style interview on Musk’s social media site later this year.
