Meet David Sacks, the friend of Elon Musk who could play kingmaker for Ron DeSantis

Venture capitalist and aboriginal PayPal enforcement David Sacks had a bundle of currency to deploy aboriginal successful the 2022 midterm campaign, and helium wanted to fig retired the champion ways to assistance Republicans up and down the ballot.

So helium called Caroline Wren for advice, according to radical acquainted with the matter.

Wren is simply a seasoned Republican fundraiser who raised wealth for erstwhile President Donald Trump's failed 2020 campaign. She besides reportedly helped stitchery currency successful enactment of the pro-Trump rally that occurred connected Jan. 6, 2021, earlier hundreds of the then-president's supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol.

Sacks asked Wren however Republicans are readying to fend disconnected well-financed Democratic-aligned nonprofits, according to a idiosyncratic with nonstop cognition of the call. Some of those nonprofits, for instance, are funded by billionaire George Soros. Wren told Sacks that Republicans lagged down successful creating and backing a formidable web of nonprofits that could boost the GOP successful elections, this idiosyncratic said. These radical and immoderate others successful this communicative spoke connected the information of anonymity to sermon backstage matters.

Federal Election Commission records amusement that Sacks donated much than $1 cardinal during the 2022 predetermination cycle, with galore of his large checks going to governmental enactment committees that supported Republicans. Sacks besides helped make a 501(c)(4) nonprofit to wield governmental influence, the quality outlet Puck antecedently reported.

These moves and his caller enactment for the statesmanlike run of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis — including hosting the candidate's kickoff event connected Twitter — show however Sacks is moving to go a GOP kingmaker. Peter Thiel, a large donor successful past predetermination cycles who worked with Sacks astatine PayPal during the dot-com era, has said helium volition not assistance idiosyncratic candidates successful the 2024 election.

Sacks has besides backed Democrats. Recently, helium donated to and hosted a fundraiser for Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., whose territory includes Silicon Valley. Khanna's bureau didn't marque him disposable for an interview, but the lawmaker said successful a connection to CNBC that he's aligned with Sacks connected "stopping defence contractor terms gouging and defending Americans' First Amendment rights."

But with Democratic President Joe Biden successful the White House, Sacks has positioned himself arsenic a vocal GOP booster going into the 2024 predetermination cycle.

The capitalist has a agelong resume successful tech and entertainment. After leaving PayPal, helium founded endeavor collaboration level Yammer that Microsoft acquired successful 2012 for $1.2 billion, past served arsenic the CEO of quality resources startup Zenefits during a troubled clip for that company. He besides produced the 2005 movie, "Thank You for Smoking," astir a trio of lobbyists moving for the tobacco, intoxicant and firearms industries.

But Sacks has ne'er had the clout oregon the currency of Thiel oregon Elon Musk, different erstwhile PayPal enforcement and friend.

"It definite seems you person a feline who has lived successful the shadiness of peers who person engaged successful large ways and are large and helium – similar galore of america – thinks authorities tin beryllium better. So helium recovered a wide lane and is enjoying the celebrity," a seasoned task superior enforcement told CNBC.

Sacks did not respond to CNBC's email seeking answers to much than a twelve questions. A DeSantis run spokesperson did not instrumentality a petition for remark earlier publication.

Widespread anti-Trump sentiment among the tech assemblage whitethorn beryllium the driving unit down Sacks and chap task capitalist Joe Lonsdale's enactment for DeSantis, according to Julie Samuels, the president of tech advocacy radical Tech:NYC.

"There's inactive a feeling successful galore tech circles that you can't beryllium a Trump protagonist successful 'polite' circles," Samuels said. DeSantis' quality with tech execs whitethorn assistance him with younger voters.

"And if DeSantis is successful with immoderate conception of the tech community, past helium truly positions himself arsenic younger and hipper than Trump, which is wherever I deliberation helium sees his lane. 'Move retired of the mode aged man, I've got it from here,'" Samuels said.

With the archetypal primaries months away, Trump is the wide person successful aboriginal superior polls, good up of DeSantis. The latest Morning Consult superior tracker shows the erstwhile president with a 34 percent constituent pb implicit the Florida governor.

Sacks' efforts successful 2022 included donating conscionable implicit $300,000 to the Purple Good Government PAC, according to FEC records. That group, successful turn, sent $100,000 to the Friends of Ron DeSantis PAC, which supported DeSantis' palmy tally for reelection successful Florida. Sacks besides donated $50,000 to the pro-DeSantis radical past cycle, according to Florida run records.

The FEC doesn't way contributions donors marque to nonprofit advocacy groups that tin besides enactment candidates. Last year, Sacks launched a 501(c)(4) nonprofit radical called Purple Action Inc. that "would question to power the satellite of authorities and policy," Puck reported.

Sacks, according to Puck, serves arsenic 1 of the group's directors. That nonprofit volition not beryllium required to publically disclose its donors.

FEC records amusement that the Purple Good Government PAC is inactive active, an denotation it could extremity up backing DeSantis for president. The PAC saw its biggest idiosyncratic contributions from Sacks and his wife.

The radical softly amassed a squad of influential consultants, including immoderate with ties to the Republican Party.

The PAC besides paid a little-known constricted liability institution called Bay Strategies. The FEC filings accidental that the Purple Good Government paid Bay Strategies astir $16,000 successful the 2022 rhythm for "consulting services" and "political strategy consulting." Those filings bash not accidental who is moving the LLC.

Stewart Hall and Jill Kendrick, 2 of the consultants who helped motorboat Bay Strategies, person links to the almighty lobbying store Crossroads Strategies and the Public Policy Holding Co., according to concern records obtained by CNBC.

Crossroads co-founder Hall, who was erstwhile an adjutant to erstwhile Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala., lobbies done the enactment for large companies including Altria Group, AT&T, Boeing, General Electric and Hearst Corp., according to nonpartisan tracking radical OpenSecrets. A 2016 concern registration signifier filed successful Washington, D.C., database Hall arsenic a "governor" for Bay Strategies.

Hall is besides CEO of the Public Policy Holding Co., a concern that says it is "a radical of premier advisory firms specializing successful authorities relations, nationalist relations, strategical research, grassroots power and integer run solutions." The advisory firms see Crossroads Strategies and Forbes Tate Partners, according to the company's website.

Kendrick, who erstwhile worked arsenic the main fiscal serviceman astatine Crossroads Strategies and is present the main operating serviceman of the Public Policy Holding Co., signed the 2016 concern registration signifier for Bay Strategies arsenic a "governor oregon an authorized person," according to the form.

Kevin McGrann, a lobbyist astatine authorities relations juggernaut Forbes Tate Partners, is besides linked to Bay Strategies, according to Hall.

McGrann, who besides utilized to enactment for erstwhile House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, "mostly helps Sacks with machinery and compliance," according to Puck. As a registered lobbyist for Forbes Tate, McGrann presently represents AT&T, the Association of Independent Mortgage Experts and United Wholesale Mortgage, according to OpenSecrets.

Hall has lobbied this twelvemonth connected issues related to banking, aerospace, homeland security, telecommunications and trade, according to OpenSecrets. McGrann has worked connected issues linked to media information, finance, telecommunications and user merchandise safety, OpenSecrets says.

Other Forbes Tate lobbyists correspond SpaceX, Musk's abstraction exploration company. Musk was a apical enforcement astatine PayPal with Thiel erstwhile Sacks worked there, and Musk pulled Sacks successful to assistance tally Twitter aft his $44 cardinal acquisition past year, CNBC has reported.

Hall referred questions astir Bay Strategies to McGrann, whom Hall said successful an email "is progressive with that work" with the Purple Good Government PAC. Kendrick and McGrann did not instrumentality requests for comment.

Sacks could assistance capable the wealth void near by Thiel, the billionaire capitalist and aboriginal Facebook backer who was a pivotal Trump booster successful 2016.

Thiel gave $35 cardinal toward Republican causes successful the 2022 predetermination cycle, making him the 10th ranked donor successful the country, according to OpenSecrets.

The Silicon Valley titan said successful a recent podcast with blimpish commentator Bari Weiss that helium isn't getting progressive with helping candidates successful the 2024 elections. Still, Thiel said successful that aforesaid interrogation helium thinks DeSantis could beryllium a large president and helium would enactment him successful the wide predetermination if helium becomes the Republican nominee.

When CNBC asked whether helium would backmost DeSantis, a Thiel spokesperson told CNBC, "Peter ne'er planned to financially backmost candidates successful 2024."

Sacks has already been turning to his web successful the tech community, which includes Musk, on with the "All-In Podcast" featuring Sacks and chap tech investors Jason Calacanis, David Friedberg and Chamath Palihapitiya, to assistance beforehand the candidates that helium likes.

Sacks moderated the Twitter Spaces lawsuit successful May featuring Musk and DeSantis arsenic the Florida politician officially announced his tally for president. While the lawsuit suffered delays owed to technical difficulties, the DeSantis squad says they ended up raising conscionable much than $8 cardinal implicit the people of the archetypal 24 hours of the campaign.

Sacks has besides opened his sphere of power to different politicians. The "All-In Podcast" has featured Democratic campaigner for president Robert F. Kennedy Jr. The Kennedy occurrence has much than 500,000 views connected YouTube, making it the apical occurrence this year.

Before Kennedy came connected the podcast, Sacks said successful a erstwhile episode that helium was "endorsing" the long-shot campaigner implicit Biden. A caller CNN poll has Kennedy with 20% of enactment among Democratic and Democratic-leaning voters. Biden had 60% of enactment among that cohort successful the aforesaid survey.

The "All-In" unit besides discussed perchance bringing GOP statesmanlike campaigner Nikki Haley onto the show. And Sacks said during a caller occurrence that helium plans to inquire the DeSantis run for the Florida politician to hold to an interview.

Calacanis, a co-host connected the podcast, suggested during the occurrence that Sacks' donations to backmost DeSantis should assistance the radical unafraid an interrogation with the Florida governor.

"Whoa, whoa whoa! You enactment 150 dimes successful – get him connected here," Calacanis told Sacks.