March 29, 2024



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Peter Thiel

AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell, File

PayPal founder and Republican megadonor Peter Thiel has reportedly told associates that he won’t financially back any political candidates in 2024 because he has grown weary of America’s culture wars.

Reuters heard from sources close to Thiel who say he wants the GOP to focus on spurring innovation, competing with China, and other economic pursuits he has urged over the years. Since the end of 2022, however, Thiel has reportedly been displeased because Republicans would rather harp about abortion, transgender bathrooms and other cultural flashpoints, which he sees as a mistake.

Thiel endorsed former President Donald Trump and spoke on his behalf at the 2016 Republican National Convention, but chose not to support his 2020 bid for re-election due to multiple frustrations with the ex-president. Thiel did bankroll his preferred Republican candidates during the 2022 midterms, which brought him into conflict with Senator Mitch McConnell (R-KY) before the red wave failed to materialize as expected last year.

Reuters acknowledged it isn’t clear what Thiel will do about Trump during the 2024 primary and general election, but their sources say that Thiel is “taking a step back from U.S. politics” altogether. The news about Thiel comes as Republican donors have become more reluctant to back Florida Governor Ron DeSantis — Trump’s potentially biggest GOP rival — while he remains bogged down in his own set of culture wars.

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