Musk, trying to sway a Wisconsin Supreme Court election, offers voters $100
The world's richest man is back to offering voters cash ahead of a race to determine the makeup of Wisconsin's highest court.
Elon Musk's America PAC — known for its potentially illegal million-dollar giveaways ahead of the 2024 election — is offering Wisconsin voters who pledge their opposition to 'activist judges' a $100 payout, a giveaway that comes weeks before a high-profile race for a state Supreme Court seat.
'Judges should interpret laws as written, not rewrite them to fit their personal or political agendas,' stated a post to X from the PAC, which was then shared by Musk.
The April 1 race between former Republican Attorney General Brad Schimel and liberal-leaning Judge Susan Crawford has drawn millions in donations from right-wing billionaires and is on track to become one of the most expensive judicial races in the country's history. Its outcome will decide the state's Supreme Court's ideological leanings for years to come.
Another Musk-funded PAC, Building America's Future, made headlines for spending $1.6 million on ads accusing Crawford of going easy on sex criminals. But the direct cash handout is the biggest attempt to move the needle yet from Musk, who spent over $250 million to influence the outcome of November's presidential race.
Still, the offer might be too good to be true. Musk's promise of payments between $47 and $100 each to petition signers and referrers in swing states last year was an easy sell for many, but some say payday never came. A New York Post report from January found Musk's PAC was still on the hook for hundreds of thousands in payments to multiple swing state volunteers.
'I've done a lot for this PAC. I've earned my [money,] and the silence is deafening,' one Arizona voter told the Post. 'Elon Musk gave us a voice, and is now not living up to the promise.'
The payouts are part of Musk's broader strategy to remake state and federal judiciaries. The DOGE boss is also campaigning to remove a federal judge who ruled against the administration, donating cash to GOP lawmakers who back an impeachment effort.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Post
26 minutes ago
- New York Post
Musk's father says Elon made a mistake going nuclear on Trump, predicts prez ‘will prevail'
Tech mogul Elon Musk's father lamented his son's scorched-earth war of words with President Trump as a 'mistake' and warned that the US leader would ultimately prevail in the nasty spat. Errol Musk, who has had a strained relationship with his billionaire son, explained that Elon had been under tremendous stress and was optimistic the two personality giants could patch things up. 'They've been under a lot of stress for five months. And it gives them a break. You know, they've had to get rid of all the opposition, try and put the country back on track, and do normal things and so forth,' Errol told Russian media, per Izvestia. 'They're very tired and stressed. And so you can expect something like this. It's not unusual,' the elder Musk added. 'Trump will prevail. He's the president. He was elected as the president, so Elon made a mistake, I think. But he's tired. He's stressed.' Elon had slowly begun to split with Trump and Republicans publicly last month over the One Big Beautiful Bill Act due to his concerns about its impact on the deficit. 4 Errol Musk seemed optimistic that President Trump and Elon Musk could reconcile. 4 Elon Musk's time as a special government employee ended last month. AFP via Getty Images It started with some swipes during an interview on CBS's 'Sunday Morning Show.' Then, Musk ramped up his attacks on the marquee GOP megabill, ripping it as 'pork-filled' and a 'disgusting abomination.' Finally, last Thursday, Musk went nuclear on Trump. The world's richest man argued that without his help, 'Trump would have lost the election, Dems would control the House and the Republicans would be 51-49 in the Senate.' At one point, Musk appeared to back impeachment against Trump and then dropped a 'big bomb,' claiming that the president was in the Epstein files, in a since-deleted post. During the epic public feud, Trump threatened to sever lucrative federal contracts with Musk's companies and the tech baron suggested he'd decommission the Dragon spacecraft, the government's main method of getting into orbit, before reversing course. 4 Elon Musk and President Trump had forged a public alliance to trim government waste and bloat. AP Musk's time as a special government employee wrapped up late last month, and Trump gave him a chummy send-off in the Oval Office. Musk had seemingly also grown incensed after the president withdrew his nomination of Jared Isaacman to helm NASA. 'Elon wants to stick to the principles of not giving in to the Democrats [and] their stupid ideas,' Errol added. 'It's normal, it's just a small thing, [it] will be over tomorrow.' Errol was in Moscow to address the Future Forum 2050, an event to promote Russia's development championed by diehard nationalist Alexander Dugin, who is known as 'Vladimir Putin's philosopher.' Trump has publicly downplayed the breakup with Musk, but warned the billionaire that there will be 'consequences' if he starts dipping into his deep pockets to help Democrats in the 2026 midterm elections. Elon has expressed openness to working to patch things up with the president and Vice President JD Vance had been optimistic they could bring the tech baron back into the fold. 'No, I don't have any plans,' Trump replied when asked by reporters if he had plans to reconcile with Musk, adding that he's 'not really interested' in such efforts. 'I'm not thinking about Elon. You know, I just wish him well.' 4 Elon Musk went berserk on President Trump last week as tensions boiled over. The president suggested that Musk had 'lost his mind' and gone 'crazy.' Privately, Trump bashed Musk as a 'big-time drug addict,' according to the Washington Post. Musk denies being addicted to drugs. Errol, who has a frosty relationship with his son, has long been a backer of Trump. The South African engineer had briefly been a politician, serving on the Pretoria City Council as an Independent and then later a member of the Progressive Federal Party, which opposed apartheid.
Yahoo
39 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Musk, Trump Feud Doesn't Change Bullish Tesla View: Dan Ives
Dan Ives, managing director at Wedbush Securities, examines the feud between President Donald Trump and Elon Musk and says this is an opportunity for investors as Tesla is "way oversold." Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
44 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Breaking down claims Stephen Miller's wife, Katie, left him for Elon Musk
In late May and early June 2025, a rumor spread on the internet that the wife of White House adviser Stephen Miller, Katie Miller, had left him for tech magnate Elon Musk, who had recently announced his departure from his role as the U.S. Department of Government Efficiency's public face. Some people online said that the relationship between Katie Miller and Musk had started with Stephen Miller's consent, an arrangement described as a "throuple." For example, one user on X shared the rumor (archived): The claim further appeared on YouTube and TikTok. This was not the first time the claims appeared. User @ on Bluesky also relayed them: (Bluesky user @ The post read: Oh I am not sh**posting, folks. Stephen Miller, his wife, and Elon are widely rumored to be a throuple. Now Miller's wife is leaving the Trump team to be with Musk & LITERALLY PER THE NEW YORK TIMES Stephen is angrily subtweeting Musk. They actually put it in the paper of record that he was mad The post on Bluesky had received 7,600 likes and 3,200 reshares as of this writing. The same rumor appeared several times on Bluesky, but also on X, where the official account of the Democratic National Committee tagged Miller in its post of a single empty chair in a supposed hotel room in reaction to rumors that Miller's wife had left government to work for Musk in the private sector (archived): The empty chair represented a meme known as the "cuck chair," a chair on which someone supposedly sits while they watch their spouse have sex with someone else. This post had amassed 2.1 million views and 32,000 likes as of this writing, further spreading the unsubstantiated claim that Miller had cheated on her husband with Musk. Snopes has reached out to the Miller couple and Musk, seeking details. However, because we were not able to confirm or disprove the story, we have left it unrated. The rumor started as Musk, CEO of Tesla and owner of SpaceX, announced his departure from DOGE. Bluesky user Snyder (to whom we have reached out for comment and await a reply) referenced a New York Times story published on May 28, 2025, which indeed referenced Miller criticizing Musk on X without naming him. Miller posted on X (archived) in response to Musk lambasting the "One Big Beautiful" budget bill the U.S. House of Representatives had voted on, which experts, including analysts at the Tax Foundation, said would cause the budget deficit to balloon. The article read: However, Stephen Miller, the White House deputy chief of staff for policy, shot back at Mr. Musk on social media without naming him. Mr. Miller asserted that the bill would reduce the deficit — despite multiple independent analyses saying otherwise — and noted that the cuts made by Mr. Musk's team were unrelated to the spending bill. Lower down in the thread on Bluesky, Snyder linked to a story published on Feb. 27, 2025, in Wired, which Snyder said "strongly implied throupledom." The story explained that while Stephen Miller had assumed the position of White House deputy chief of staff for policy and homeland security adviser, his wife had been appointed as "top communications official at DOGE," directly with Musk. Citing an anonymous Republican source, the story went on to suggest that this had been by design: The Millers are seen inside Trumpworld as glorified babysitters for Musk, tasked with ensuring he stays within bounds, insofar as that's possible. "He gets a lot of grace," the first Republican said of Musk. "Many people aren't nervous, because Stephen Miller is deeply involved. And Katie." This Republican compared Musk to a preteen child. However, the Wired story implied more salacious suspicions about the relationship between the Millers and Musk without making them explicit: Musk's relationship with the Millers has become a subject of great intrigue in Washington as DOGE continues to wreak havoc on the federal government. Little is known about how often they interact outside of work and how the relationship grew over the late stages of the campaign into the transition. "If you can find out anything about Stephen Miller's social life, I don't wanna know the answer," says a longtime Republican operative who knows the couple personally. Given the anonymous sourcing, Snopes was unable to independently verify Wired's reporting. We have reached out to Snyder on Bluesky asking if the user heard the rumor independently. However, on May 28, 2025, a CNN report that Katie Miller had left DOGE to work for Musk full time gave new life to claims that the relationship between Musk and the pair was more complicated than it seemed. Citing three unnamed sources, CNN said Miller was now helping arrange interviews for Musk. Snopes was unable to independently verify CNN's reporting because it was based on anonymous sources. Though several internet users took it to mean that she had left her husband, with whom she shares three children, the reality is that Katie Miller had the status of "special government employee," which precluded her working more than 130 days per year for the U.S. government. As such, she would have had to leave government work regardless of which job she took on after her stint at DOGE. While she did not confirm the story, she had reshared on X one post by Musk regarding his departure from the government, as well as a screen capture of one of his quotes about DOGE, suggesting she may indeed be working as his spokeswoman. Two days later, on May 30, 2025, Musk stood in the White House Oval Office, speaking to the press alongside U.S. President Donald Trump about his return to the private sector. Musk appeared with a bruise around his right eye. While Musk said he owed his black eye to his son, whom he said he had instructed to punch him, the internet once again lit up with speculation (archived): The post had gained 2.7 million views and 41,000 likes as of this writing. Snopes reached out to the Millers as well as Musk asking them to provide further details. We will update this report should they respond. "'Big Beautiful Bill' House GOP Tax Plan: Preliminary Details and Analysis." Tax Foundation, 13 May 2025, Accessed 2 June 2025. "Elon Musk Bids Farewell to White House but Says Doge Will Continue." BBC, 29 May 2025, Accessed 2 June 2025. Hamilton, Phillip. "Cuck Chair." Know Your Meme, 15 Nov. 2022, Accessed 2 June 2025. Klein, Betsy, et al. "May 28, 2025 - Donald Trump Presidency News." CNN, 28 May 2025, Accessed 2 June 2025. Lahut, Jake. "Elon Musk's Takeover Is Being Aided by a Trumpworld Power Couple." WIRED, 27 Feb. 2025, Accessed 2 June 2025. Pager, Tyler, et al. "Elon Musk, Distanced from Trump, Says He's Exiting Washington and DOGE." The New York Times, 29 May 2025, Accessed 2 June 2025. Pogue, David, and Joe Walsh. "Elon Musk Says He's 'Disappointed' by Trump's 'Big, Beautiful Bill' and What It Means for DOGE." CBS News, 28 May 2025, Accessed 2 June 2025. Siddiqui, Faiz, and Frances Vinall. "Musk Explains His Black Eye, Says He Told Son X to Punch Him." The Washington Post, 31 May 2025, Accessed 2 June 2025. "Summary of Government Ethics Rules for Special Government Employees." 27 Aug. 2014, Accessed 2 June 2025.
