In a disturbing display of how brazenly billionaires are trying to manipulate US politics, RFK Jr.’s benefactor Nicole Shanahan tried to coerce senators into doing her bidding this week or risk expulsion from Congress.
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Nicole Shanahan is a nobody. Her claims to fame include marrying someone rich, divorcing him, and then using her newfound fortune to buy her way onto the ticket of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s failed presidential campaign.
And this week, she has become a symbol of the disturbing influence the uber-rich have on US politics.
On Tuesday, ahead of RFK Jr.’s confirmation hearing to become secretary of health and human services, Shanahan, who has been elected to nothing, issued a threat to US senators: Oppose Kennedy’s nomination at your own peril because, if you vote against him, I will make it my personal mission to boot you out of office.
“While Bobby may be willing to play nice, I won’t if you vote against him,” said Shanahan in a video posted to X. “I will personally fund challengers to primary you in your next election, and I will enlist hundreds of thousands to join me.”
The “philanthropist,” who got her money from divorcing Google co-founder Sergey Brin after a brief marriage, name-checked several senators from both parties whom she expects to do her bidding or face her wrath (and money).
She especially singled out Georgia Democrats Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff, stating that she cut large checks to help them get elected.
It’s not surprising that a billionaire, even one with no accomplishments of her own, is trying to put her thumb on the scales of democracy. Various Supreme Court decisions and a general disinterest among lawmakers to reform campaign finance laws in a meaningful way have put the richest Americans in a position to buy the government that best suits their needs.
What is surprising is how brazen they have become.
We challenge you to watch this video and not find it odious.
Dear U.S. Senators,
Bobby may play nice; I won’t. pic.twitter.com/G9SZjZhFYR
— Nicole Shanahan (@NicoleShanahan) January 29, 2025
Sure, if you are a MAGA supporter, you may be delighted by the role that billionaires are currently playing in politics. After all, Elon Musk, the richest man in the world, has not only spent a quarter of a billion dollars on getting Donald Trump elected (and himself into an influential position), he also controls a social media platform that allows him to use a steady stream of misinformation to support far-right candidates across the globe.
However, Democrats also continue to be the beneficiaries of the largesse of the ultra-rich, like George Soros and Michael Bloomberg. Of course, in those cases, GOP voters object to the influence of billionaires.
But the bottom line is that nobody should have this much power.
If Musk wants to get Trump elected, he can max out his permissible personal donation of $6,600 (and another $100,000 and change if he also gives to the GOP), and then he can knock on doors.
And if Shanahan wants to boot a dozen senators out of office, she can contribute $3,300 to primary candidates and put up yard signs.
What should not happen, however, is that billionaires form their own shadow government and decide who should be a representative of the people and what they should do when in office.
In his Navigating the Insanity columns, Klaus Marre provides the kind of hard-hitting, thought-provoking, and often humorous analysis you won’t find anywhere else.