Most Trump supporters have always been amused by the antics of those considered “Never Trumpers.” They tend to populate all mainstream media talk-head news shows, primarily because they are supposedly Republicans willing to denigrate other Republicans, but they condemn any presidency of Donald Trump or those who support him. They long for the days of John Boehner, Paul Ryan, Liz Cheney and soon Mitt Romney. The times when Republicans weren’t in charge and were willing to “lose gracefully.” Well, move over, Never-Trumpers; There are fresh kids on the block. Meet the “Never-Bidens.”
Crazy. This is one of the worst acts ever against an ally of a sitting president. Hopefully that means he won’t be sitting for much longer. https://t.co/PFQXpNwjpn
— Bill Ackman (@BillAckman) May 9, 2024
Joe Biden makes friends quickly. OK, not really. In fact, it’s exactly the opposite. In addition to a current one New York Times/Siena College/Philadelphia Enquirer According to a poll, he is losing key Democratic voter groups such as black and Hispanic voters and juvenile people. But he is also losing some heavyweights in the area of immense donors. One of the main reasons is Biden’s recent statement that he would stop any arms deliveries to Israel. Biden has since then have withdrawn this statement, but the damage may already be done.
Cliff Asness is co-founder of AQR Capital Management and a Republican donor. He donated around seven figures to Nikki Haley’s campaign and could easily have been considered a “Never-Trumper.” Based on Biden’s initial “Guns for Israel” statement, that changes. He explained:
“Biden is a huge disappointment, truly a moral scandal, as this arms embargo is only the latest and greatest scandal. Despite my long opposition to him, it is more likely that I see Trump as the better of two bad alternatives, even though I haven’t gotten quite that far yet.”
Bill Ackman is a name you may have heard recently. Ackman is a Harvard alumnus and was instrumental in the dismissal by Claudine Gay as president of Harvard because Gay had plagiarized the work of others. After Biden’s comments, he tweeted: “One of the worst acts ever against an ally of a sitting president.” Hopefully this means he will no longer sit.” Ackman now sees himself as a “centrist” and “will vote for and support whoever is on is best for our country, regardless of party affiliation.” That could be Donald Trump.
I spoke to someone who is a major Democratic donor who said he doesn’t want to vote for or donate to Biden this year. He believes Biden hasn’t done enough to push back the far left. He said he would be willing to donate to Trump if Trump could give him a good reason with a moderate…
— Adam Lowisz (@AdamLowisz) May 14, 2024
Michael Granoff is managing partner of Maniv, a venture fund committed to immaculate transportation technology. He voted for Joe Biden in 2020, but the only vote he will give him in 2024 is a vote of no confidence. He said: “I’m not voting for Biden. I’m not saying I’m voting for Trump, but the chance now is non-zero.” Granoff believes Biden mismanaged his commitments to Israel after the October 7 Hamas disaster. He added:
“The speech he gave on October 11 was one of the most beautiful speeches a president has ever given. Had he stuck to that policy, he would be leading the race now. I would raise money for him.”
The “Never Biden” movement may have been underway for some time, as far back as the State of the Union address in early March. In the speech, Biden recounted the death toll of the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza. The Incomplete data did not provide discrimination between dead civilians and dead combatants. David Freidman, a former Trump ambassador to Israel, isn’t a “Never-Biden” himself, but says he’s definitely seeing a trend of Jewish donors turning to Trump. He explained:
“I think Wednesday’s announcement (Biden’s first arms-for-Israel statement) was the final straw for people who were already very close to voting for Trump. There is clearly a change afoot. People who are active in politics with a lot of money, people who have never been Trump supporters or are reluctant to “shut up to Trump,” tell me that Trump must win.”
It’s a balancing act that Joe Biden is clearly losing. He is trying to appease the pro-Hamas wing of the Democratic Party — the Rashida Tlaibs and the Ilhan Omars — while maintaining the Jewish electorate, which has long been a reliable Democratic voting bloc. He makes everyone incensed, including the people who have the money.
Whether Democrats like it or not, Joe Biden’s dealings with Israel are a campaign issue for both sides of the conflict. Billionaire entertainment mogul Haim Saban is a major Democratic donor. Perhaps he said it best in a recent email to two senior White House aides: “Let’s not forget that there are more Jewish voters who care about Israel than there are Muslim voters who care about Hamas. “Which side will Joe Biden choose?
Democratic mega-donor Haim Saban wrote an email to Biden advisers Steve Ricchetti and Anita Dunn about Biden’s decision to put an arms shipment to Israel on hold: “Let’s not forget that there are more Jewish voters who care about Israel , as Muslim voters who care about Hamas.” ” pic.twitter.com/HdeI9iOL3W
— Barak Ravid (@BarakRavid) May 9, 2024
