Ben Horowitz says he’ll donate to Kamala Harris in spite of everything

International Courant

“As I discussed earlier than, Felicia and I’ve recognized Vice President Harris for over 10 years and she or he has been an important buddy to each of us throughout that point,” Horowitz wrote in an e mail to his enterprise capital agency obtained by Axios. “Because of our friendship, Felicia and I can be making a big donation to entities that help the Harris Walz marketing campaign.”

“Like, how do you stroll that again?”

I… hear. Two issues. First, probably the most putting issues in regards to the podcast Horowitz made together with his a16z co-founder Marc Andreessen was how centered each males had been on who’d take their conferences. Their political commitments, in lots of respects, boiled right down to who would spend face time with them. Close to the top of the podcast, Horowitz informed what was (I believe?) presupposed to be a heartwarming story about hanging out with Trump’s grandkids — and the way his response to listening to in regards to the assassination try on Trump was, “Oh my god, Grandpa simply acquired shot.”

So, you recognize, the entire thing the place Harris has been “an important buddy” to each Horowitz and his spouse checks out as a political place for him. In some respects, I get it. I, too, need to see my buddies succeed!

However second, that essential Trump endorsement was made earlier than Joe Biden dropped out of the presidential race in favor of Harris, and earlier than the large outpouring of help for the brand new Democratic candidate. That meant a16z had already sacrificed any leverage it may need with a Harris administration — and a candidate who made Trump look much less like a certain winner. Within the case of a Harris win, these boys had been taking a look at a whole 4 years with out essential conferences, and we already know they see that as a horrible tragedy for all the nation.

With the intention to regain any risk of leverage in a doubtlessly Democrat-led authorities, somebody was going to should eat humble pie, and it certain as shit wasn’t going to be Andreessen. Horowitz, whose help for Trump was termed a “Maga U-turn” by The San Francisco Customary, has a historical past of donating to progressive causes; Harris, then a senator, was even a visitor at a Horowitz yard barbecue in 2018.

“I am simply questioning what they’re gonna do when Kamala wins,” one founder informed The San Francisco Customary of the a16z Trump endorsement. “Like, how do you stroll that again?”

Nicely, I suppose we all know now. Horowitz’s e mail says that he is had a number of conversations with Harris and her staff — essential to notice right here that he acquired to the candidate herself, provided that entry is outwardly one among Horowitz’s foremost political issues. And so whereas Horowitz nonetheless thinks President Joe Biden is no-good and really dangerous, he’s “inspired by my perception” in Harris to do good for tech, even supposing she has not but staked out any political positions.

Harris has form of made overtures on what Horowitz termed “in all probability essentially the most emotional subject” within the election: crypto. One in every of her marketing campaign aides has mentioned, “She’s going to help insurance policies that be certain that rising applied sciences and that form of business can proceed to develop,” in response to a query about crypto.

Ben Horowitz says he’ll donate to Kamala Harris in spite of everything

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