Tech billionaire Elon Musk will have to attend a Thursday hearing in Philadelphia on the legality of his Trump-backed super PAC’s diary A gift worth $1 million according to court documents filed Wednesday in the case of voters in Pennsylvania and other swing states.
Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner also urged the court to raise security at the trial in the wake of anti-Semitic posts and threats, including the publication of Krasner’s home address, on Musk’s social networking site X, formerly known as Twitter.
Krasner filed a lawsuit on Monday, claiming the giveaway is an illegal lottery.
“On the same day that this complaint was filed, Elon Musk posted to his 202.7 million followers on X, his social networking site, his approval of the attack on the Court’s integrity by declaring that Larry Krasner “knows it is not illegal , but wants a left-wing judge to stop this case before Election Day,” the district attorney’s office said in a motion.
It noted that Musk’s post had nearly 9 million views and sparked an “avalanche” of replies containing anti-Semitic attacks on Krasner, Gov. Josh Shapiro and Democratic campaign fundraiser George Soros.
“Worse still, one account responded to posts about the lawsuit at least 19 times, encouraging political violence and posting the Krasner family’s home address, including numerous posts also stating, ‘Krasner loves guests.’ Wear a mask and leave all cell phones at home,” Krasner’s filing said, noting that the posts included instructions to avoid identification by video or cell phone geolocation.
According to Krasner’s documents, the posts remain apparent on X. Musk’s lawyer did not respond to an email seeking comment.
Philadelphia Judge Angelo Foglieta issued an order Wednesday afternoon to move the hearing from Friday to Thursday and ordered the presence of Musk, a representative of his super PAC and Krasner. He also ordered Musk and America PAC to file a response to the lawsuit.
Musk, an extremely wealthy SpaceX investor and Tesla CEO, announced earlier this month that he would pay registered voters to sign his America PAC’s petition on gun rights and free speech, raising questions about the legality of the offer.
Payments were initially $47 per voter and increased to $100. Then on October 19, at a pro-Trump rally in Harrisburg, Musk announced that he would donate $1 million every day until the election to a randomly selected petition signatory.
Election law experts say federal law clearly prohibits payments to induce people to register to vote or cast ballots. Violators of the rules, whether payers or recipients, may face fines or imprisonment if they are prosecuted. Pennsylvania law is less clear and prohibits payment for votes but not registration.
Musk has donated approximately $75 million to his pro-Trump America PAC in recent months, bringing his total spending this election cycle to more than $119 million.
Such virtually unlimited spending in the political arena has been legal since 2010, when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in its Citizens United decision that the free speech clause of the First Amendment prohibits the government from limiting independent spending on political contributions made by corporations, organizations non-profits and trade unions. and other associations.
Krasner’s lawsuit, filed Monday, alleges that the giveaway violates Pennsylvania lottery law and violates consumer protection laws. Under state law, only the commonwealth is authorized to organize a lottery that provides revenue to fund programs for seniors.
“To be clear, this is not a question of whether defendants violated state or federal laws prohibiting vote buying. Instead, the case is very simple because America PAC and Musk are unquestionably violating Pennsylvania’s statutory prohibitions against illegal sweepstakes and consumer fraud,” the lawsuit says.
Krasner’s lawsuit seeks an injunction to stop America PAC and Musk from continuing the violations. He says allowing them to continue would irreparably harm the people of Philadelphia and Pennsylvania and “destroy the public’s right to wages and fair elections.”
Shapiro said in an Oct. 20 interview on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that Musk’s spending was “deeply disturbing.”
“I think there are serious questions about how he’s spending money in this race, how dark money is flowing not only into Pennsylvania but clearly now into the pockets of Pennsylvanians,” Shapiro said, adding that Musk has the right to their views and support for the Republican Party’s presidential candidate, former President Donald Trump.
Shapiro did not call for an investigation when asked whether he thought it might break the law.
“Yes, I think it’s something law enforcement might look at. I am no longer the attorney general of Pennsylvania. I’m the governor, but this raises some sedate questions,” Shapiro said.
Pennsylvania Attorney General spokeswoman Michelle Henry said the office’s priority is ensuring the integrity of the commonwealth’s elections. While the attorney general’s office is aware of the situation, a spokesman said it cannot confirm or deny an investigation into America PAC’s activities.
(This story was updated at 9 p.m. on Wednesday, October 30, 2024, to reflect the hearing being rescheduled for Thursday.)
YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE.
