Tracking a network of Bay Area political pressure groups, secretly funded by a handful of conservative tech and real estate robber barons.

San Francisco
Joined December 2023
The Phoenix Project retweeted
Money in. Money out. @Scott_Wiener is a high yield savings account for billionaire elites and techies with a net worths north of $20M.
AI corporations & their employees pouring money into electing @Scott_Wiener expect him to make them MORE money. Like an investment.💰 We CANNOT trust him to put artists, musicians, and our privacy ahead of his donors’ return. @freemarketfail 🙏
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Crypto billionaire Chris Larsen gave $500,000 to a PAC backing Theo Ellington, a candidate for SF Supervisor in District 10. The PAC route sidesteps the city's $500 individual donation limit. It's reportedly the largest donation ever in an SF supervisor race. 🧵
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District 10 is one of SF's lower-income districts and home to its largest Black community. Larsen reportedly secured Ellington's promise to support expanded police surveillance. Ellington backs a data center moratorium for now, but how long can he say no to his donors?
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The Phoenix Project retweeted
Coming soon to Public Safety Committee, "Drone as First Responder" program-drones sited on rooftops, piloted remotely from HQ, responding to calls, streaming surveillance before deploying police. Use Policy approved by PAC, use policy and acquisition approved by OPC last night.
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The Phoenix Project retweeted
I was handed this Oakland Watch booklet today that claims Sheng Thao and Barbara Lee lead the political machine responsible for corruption in Oakland. I was wondering who was associated with Oakland Watch and then the guy walked by again with Seneca Scott. Of course.
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The Phoenix Project retweeted
I think our data & politics team is among the best in the biz, & today's piece is an example why: a network map of San Francisco's interconnected, billionaire-backed groups, politicos & more. Gobs of money & a new class of donors that Lurie has brought in—explore it all below.
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The Phoenix Project retweeted
It's reputation laundering for Fairshake, just like Chris Larsen's recent apology tour. $362,000 to a progressive Democrat who is likely to win her seat is a small price to launder the $46.6 million and counting they are paying to keep Sherrod Brown out of the US Senate.
Fairshake, the crypto super PAC, is now spending for the progressive Aisha Wahab in the fight between two Democrats in California. Fairshake has taken some shots from folks who think the group is too Republican-coded and partisan. But here they are backing a more left-wing Democrat.
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Where do SFUSD Board candidates stand on school closures, special ed, enrollment policy, & board accountability? Hear directly from candidates on Wed, Oct 28 (6–7:30 PM). RSVP / Join: bit.ly/PPSBoardCandidateForu… #SFUSD #SanFrancisco #SFPublicSchools #SFElections #EducationMatters
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The Phoenix Project retweeted
shot, chaser
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The Phoenix Project retweeted
Scott Wiener’s congressional campaign is directly coordinating with a super PAC in an unusual arrangement that at times appears to stretch the bounds of campaign finance law: washingtonsun.com/influence/…
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BREAKING🚨 Washington Post has leaked a private list of donors to Trump’s ballroom. On the list is SF crypto billionaire and political megadonor Chris Larsen’s company Ripple Labs with $5m, bringing Larsen’s total Trump donations to $9.9m. washingtonpost.com/investiga…
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Larsen has also become one of the biggest spenders on California-wide issues, contributing $15m Grow California, an organization he co-founded backing candidates across the state, along with giving $12.5m to oppose prop 40, the CA billionaire tax.
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Locally in SF, he has become a major benefactor of GrowSF and the Abundance Network, as well as Empower Oakland across the Bay. He made headlines last month when he contributed $500k to D10 candidate Theo Ellington - the highest donation in the history of SF supervisor elections
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