00:00Silicon Valley leaders have typically supported Democratic presidential candidates.
00:05So why has there been a sudden shift toward Republicans?
00:10It surprises me that the shift is getting a lot of attention.
00:15It's predictable. It's inevitable.
00:17Longtime California Democratic strategist Derry Schrago says it comes down to basic economics.
00:23Tech CEOs now have an immense amount of wealth, and they want to hold on to it.
00:28Republicans tend to support lower taxes on the wealthy and fewer regulations.
00:33And it should come as no surprise that they will share that wealth to protect their own interests.
00:40I mean, they have every right to do that.
00:43And their interests are, in general, not to be taxed and not to be regulated.
00:52I mean, there's nothing wrong with that. That's just the position they're in.
00:56President Trump must win.
00:59While the shift has taken place gradually, the biggest swing came during the 2024 campaign, led by Elon Musk.
01:07Musk had not been involved in politics very much previously, but then led a new group of Silicon Valley investors into the political arena.
01:14The earlier investors in Donald Trump and conservatives during the 2024 cycle were new investors.
01:20So those were tech executives coming out of the woodworks, the Elon Musk's who hadn't given in the past.
01:25So should Democrats be concerned about this swing?
01:29Yes, there is a concern. There absolutely is a concern.
01:32But, I mean, you know, I mean, there's nothing new here.
01:36Schrago says big money in American politics has been the status quo for decades, and the party needs to focus on what's brought them success in the past.
01:46Democrats gained power in this country back in the relatively early part of the 20th century by fighting for workers, for the people employed by the large companies.
02:03And that's not presently part of this very superficial discussion that's taking place.
02:10After such a quick switch to the right, could another switch back come in the next election?
02:17It's been such a quick shift already just during the 2024 cycle.
02:21I think that just in the final months of that cycle, it completely changed the face of, like, who Silicon Valley supports in elections.
02:28And so I think that it's hard to say what shift happens next because it has been so quick, which is very much kind of echoes the rest of the tech world.
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