Tech billionaire and GOP megadonor Elon Musk is making waves with an extraordinary offer: he’s willing to pay up to $1 million per day to a person who signs his pro-Trump America PAC petition and agrees to serve as a spokesperson until Election Day.
The Tesla and SpaceX CEO launched this daily giveaway campaign on Saturday, October 19, during a town hall event in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.
Musk expressed frustration with traditional media’s refusal to cover the petition, saying, “One of the challenges we’re having is like, well, how do we get people to know about this petition? Because the legacy media is—won’t report on it. Now about it? Well, this news, I think, is going to really fly.”
Musk continued by explaining the terms of the giveaway, announcing, “We really want to get as many people as possible to sign this petition, so I have a surprise for you. And it’s that we’ll be awarding a million dollars randomly to people who have signed the petition. Every day, until the election.”
Immediately after the announcement, Musk selected the first random recipient from the audience, a self-declared fan named John Dreher. Dreher was awarded a $1 million check on the spot.
Musk clarified, “The only thing we ask for the million dollars is that you be a spokesperson for the petition.”
Federal Election Commission (FEC) documents show that Musk is the primary financial backer of the pro-Trump petition, personally contributing at least $75 million from July to September, according to a Fox Business report.
Musk’s political action committee aims to rally over a million voters across crucial swing states like Georgia, Nevada, Arizona, Michigan, Wisconsin, and North Carolina.
The petition focuses on supporting freedom of speech and the right to bear ar*s, with a goal to gather signatures by October 21.
Challenges for the Musk-backed Pro-Trump Group?
However, the campaign isn’t without hurdles. Reports from The Guardian and Reuters suggest that the America PAC’s door-knocking efforts in some swing states are falling short.
Sources claim the PAC’s canvassing app has possibly been fraudulently recording door-knocking activity. Paid canvassers seem to be missing their targets, indicating a lack of commitment compared to dedicated campaign staff.
Leaked data could seriously impact Trump’s re-election chances. According to The Guardian, America PAC’s internal figures show that approximately 24% of door-knocks in Arizona and 25% in Nevada were flagged for “unusual survey logs” in the Campaign Sidekick app, casting doubt on the reliability of the outreach efforts.
