Records show Thomas Klingenstein is at the forefront of donors pushing polarizing politics in the Republican party

Thomas Klingenstein, chairperson of the rightwing Claremont Institute, has cemented his place in the pantheon of Republican megadonors with a more than $10m spending spree so far in the 2024 election cycle, according to campaign contributions recorded by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).

Klingenstein has been one of Claremont’s largest donors for decades. As the institute has made its hard-right, pro-Trump drift in recent years, Klingenstein has continued to publicly describe US politics with extremist rhetoric, calling it a “cold civil war”, and has encouraged rightwingers to join the fight to defeat what he calls “the woke regime”.

His spending puts him at the forefront of a class of donors who are explicitly supporting more extreme and polarizing politics in Trump’s Republican party.

The largesse has already dwarfed his contributions in previous election seasons. The money has gone exclusively to Republicans, and has included seven-figure donations to at least four pro-Trump Pacs in recent months.

  • Philharmonic3@lemmy.world
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    25 days ago

    Hey man, you’re spending your money in the wrong place. I’m a deep liberal plant and with just 5 million dollars I’ll totally stop the whole regime. My history of protesting and posting in support of their ideas has made them trust me and I will use your money to flip the whole system on its head. Trust me bro I promise

  • nifty@lemmy.world
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    25 days ago

    The only “woke” thing he’s worried about is unions and wage increases. All culture war stuff is a distraction.

  • don@lemm.ee
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    25 days ago

    The “broke” in “broke mob” doesn’t refer to money, it refers to the state of their poorly crafted brains.

  • Asafum@feddit.nl
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    26 days ago

    Every single piece of shit getting worked up over “woke” is just inadvertently admitting they’re heartless cunts…

    YOU’RE MAD AT THE RECOGNITION THAT PEOPLE OTHER THAN STRAIGHT WHITE CIS MALES AND CIS FEMALES EXIST!

    Boo fucking hoo they’re in movies and TV. Boo fucking hoo they need to ensure fair treatment of “others” because racist hateful people like you exist. Cry me a fucking river hate filled snowflakes…

    But instead we’re going to get dictator Trump because propagandists are the absolute worst scum in the universe…

    • jballs@sh.itjust.works
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      25 days ago

      I agree with you, but just want to point out that your definition of “woke” doesn’t match their’s. It seems like you recognize that “woke” means recognizing that there are systems of oppression that exist which work against people that are not straight, white males.

      Their definition of “woke” is simply something they don’t like or agree with.

    • Franklin@lemmy.world
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      12 days ago

      It’s important to note that all of this is just manufactured, it is in the interest of capitalists to push narratives that insight racism, transphobia and xenophobia in order to divide the working class and further their political capture.

      • Asafum@feddit.nl
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        25 days ago

        Divide and conquer, probably the oldest strategy there is. We’ve become the bread and circus that keep us at bay. :(