In an interview with CBS News 60 Minutes, Michael Lewis, author of a new book entitled "Going Infinite: The Rise and Fall of a New Tycoon" which documents Sam Bankman-Fried's (SBF) journey in the crypto world, revealed that the FTX founder once considered paid Donald Trump $5 billion to keep the former President from running for the presidency. The reason is his belief that Trump is a threat to democracy.
Lewis revealed that the SBF wants to provide financial support to Mitch McConnell, the Republican leader in the US Senate, to fund Republican candidates who are not aligned with Donald Trump. The plan is to donate millions of dollars to support politicians whom McConnell deems fit to lead the United States.
After its dinner meeting with McConnell, the SBF gave tens of millions of dollars to support Republican candidates. However, the majority of these funds are now under the control of FTX's current management. Additionally, the former CEO has plans to increase donations further during the upcoming 2024 US elections.
The SBF believes that Trump is a serious threat to democracy and must be stopped, so it is considering paying Trump not to run, but it is unclear how much that would cost. Lewis noted that the SBF itself is unsure whether the $5 billion that might be awarded in that scenario would come directly from Trump or whether such a strategy would be legal.
However, in the end, the plan failed, and the money was never paid because the FTX company led by SBF finally went bankrupt.
One way in which Bankman-Fried uses his wealth is through political donations. Most notably in the 2022 midterm elections, SBF is spending $40 million to support the Democratic Party, but it is also known as a big donor to the Republican Party.
