Tech Industry Turns Away from Biden... Rallying Under Trump

White House Fails to Appease Cryptocurrency Industry
Musk, Ackman and Other Titans Support Trump

The Washington Post (WP) reported on the 18th (local time) that Silicon Valley, long considered a political stronghold of the Democratic Party, is turning its back on the Biden administration.

According to the report, Anita Dunn, a senior White House advisor, invited industry representatives to a hotel near the White House last week to ease tensions with the cryptocurrency industry, which has been at odds with the Biden administration. President Joe Biden has been regarded as a 'public enemy' of the industry, having previously supported legislation to tax the cryptocurrency mining industry at 30% or to block banks from entering the cryptocurrency custody business.

[Image source=AFP Yonhap News]

However, the meeting did not go as expected. Sources said the attendees openly expressed hostility toward the White House, which reportedly left Senior Advisor Dunn quite taken aback. The attendees criticized the Biden administration's regulatory-only approach to the tech industry, and among them was Mark Cuban, an American billionaire businessman and owner of the NBA team Dallas Mavericks.

Ro Khanna, a Democratic member of the House of Representatives who hosted the meeting, stated, "Senior Advisor Dunn spent more than an hour in a Q&A session with the attendees," adding, "We are working on follow-up measures to continue the dialogue and further develop the relationship." A White House official said, "Senior Advisor Dunn expressed gratitude for the attendees' candid opinions" and "looks forward to ongoing engagement with the cryptocurrency and blockchain community."

WP assessed, "Tech elites are beginning to view President Biden as an obstacle to innovation," and noted, "Following the assassination attempt on Saturday, numerous Silicon Valley leaders are moving toward former President Donald Trump, signaling a clear political shift in the tech industry." Santa Clara County, which includes most of Silicon Valley, overwhelmingly supported Biden with 73% of the vote in the presidential election four years ago.

[Photo by Elon Musk X capture]

As WP pointed out, since the shooting incident involving former President Trump on the 13th, IT industry magnates have been joining the ranks of Trump supporters one after another. Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, who publicly declared support via social media immediately after the Trump shooting incident, welcomed the selection of J.D. Vance, a Silicon Valley native, as a running mate, saying, "Resounds with victory." He also tagged a social media post listing famous figures who joined the Trump support camp, including hedge fund magnate Bill Ackman, emphasizing, "The choice is clear."

While support for former President Trump is spreading within Silicon Valley, WP noted that Democratic supporters in the same industry are not actively voicing their opinions. An anonymous Silicon Valley executive reportedly lamented, "The group supporting President Biden is trapped on an island." WP explained, "Big tech leaders such as Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google, and Satya Nadella, CEO of Microsoft (MS), who opposed the Trump administration's immigration policies in 2017, are also refraining from making public statements."