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In my last post I quoted from an interview of Sheldon Adelson by Forbes’ Steven Bertoni that is actually an excerpt from an upcoming cover story on the casino mogul. Confronted with his responsibility for the unusually vicious attack ads on Mitt Romney that the Gingrich Super-PAC Winning Our Future ran in SC, Adelson just waved his hand dismissively and said it was “untrue.” This sort of bald-faced assertion seems to be a personal signature for Sheldon, as evidenced by another segment of the interview:
“I’m against very wealthy Âpeople attempting to or influencing elections,” he shrugs. “But as long as it’s doable I’m going to do it. Because I know that guys like Soros have been doing it for years, if not decades. And they stay below the radar by creating a network of corporations to funnel their money. I have my own philosophy and I’m not ashamed of it. I gave the money because there is no other legal way to do it. I don’t want to go through ten different corporations to hide my name. I’m proud of what I do and I’m not looking to escape recognition.”
Yeah, that George Soros is devious, all right; nobody’s ever heard his name before. Adelson is just a regular guy whose ability to earn an honest living is being threatened by Barack Obama’s administration, and he’s not going to sit by and watch socialism take over America:
The man whose net worth, by Forbes’ calculations, has jumped more ($21.6 billion) during Obama Administration than any American — Mark Zuckerberg included — wants to take the president out for economic reasons.“What scares me is the continuation of the socialist-style economy we’ve been experiencing for almost four years. That scares me because the redistribution of wealth is the path to more socialism, and to more of the government controlling people’s lives. What scares me is the lack of accountability that people would prefer to experience, just let the government take care of everything and I’ll go fish or I won’t work, etc.”
Adelson suggests that his personal spending on Super-PACs could reach $100 million—he’s already up to a reported $21 million if you count his family’s contributions—and could definitely go much higher, notes Bertoni:
With a net worth of roughly $25 billion, that $11 million [his initial investment in the Gingrich Super-PAC], which jolted Gingrich’s flatlining presidential bid back to life, equates to 0.044% of his fortune. For someone with a $1 million net worth, the equivalent would be $440, or a two-night stay at Adelson’s Venetian casino. Adelson could personally fund an entire presidential campaign—say, $1 billion or so—and not even notice.
Hard to blame him, or the folks lavishly financing Mitt Romney’s heavier-spending, and equally vicious, Super-PAC. After all, in Obama’s America, they are being taxed and regulated into penury. Perhaps buying a presidential candidate is the last resort before they give up and repair to Galt’s Gulch, leaving the ungrateful parasites of this country behind to fend for themselves.
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Oh my on February 21, 2012 9:28 AM:
Adelson suggests that his personal spending on Super-PACs could reach $100 million...
Or what Sheldon calls a wild Thursday night
T2 on February 21, 2012 9:43 AM:
it occurred to me this morning that, given the millions and millions being donated to unseat Barack Obama, and the millions and millions being donated to re-elect him....maybe we aren't in a Recession anymore and maybe there is plenty money after all. Just think, if all that donated money had been spent on making things better for the citizens of our nation...instead of trying to obtain power over them.
Mike on February 21, 2012 9:46 AM:
Just because someone's net worth is $21 billion doesn't mean that he has that much cash in the bank. It's entirely possible, perhaps likely, that he could not get his hands on $1 billion quickly. However, the figure of $100 million that Adelson throws out seems more doable. And, after all, $100 million can buy a lot of influence.
DAY on February 21, 2012 9:48 AM:
Casinos are fueled by disposable or "discretionary" income. So I would think Sheldon would be in favor of a vibrant middle class with a few extra bucks in their pockets, come Friday night.
biggerbox on February 21, 2012 10:01 AM:
It's absurd to me that someone with more money than he could possibly spend in a lifetime, but who still goes to work every day can suggest that small government poverty-relief payments will completely eliminate people's desire to work.
People don't want to experience a "lack of accountability", they want to experience a "presence of food on the table" and a "knowledge of roof overhead."
Patrick Star on February 21, 2012 10:02 AM:
This guy talks just like the knuckleheads I deal with at work every day. It's like half the country has been brainwashed en masse. Adelson is one of the richest people in the world, but he's just as f#cking dumb as your average truck driver. Unbelievable.
Marko on February 21, 2012 10:11 AM:
Shorter Adelson: "I don't like to piss down people's back while telling them it's raining, but they need the rain."
Comrade Carter on February 21, 2012 10:19 AM:
"After all, in Obama’s America, they are being taxed and regulated into penury."
Really? Then where are they getting any money from? Millions... But they're into penury.
John in TX on February 21, 2012 10:24 AM:
Adelson is one of the richest people in the world, but he's just as f#cking dumb as your average truck driver. Unbelievable.
Patrick Star on February 21, 2012 10:02 AM
I was gonna say the same thing. All that money -- which he could be donating to good causes -- and he sounds every bit as ignorant as the rednecks at the local Waffle House spouting Fox "news" talking points.
bob h on February 21, 2012 10:26 AM:
With Netanyahu frustrated by Obama's refusal to attack Iran for him, I would guess that he will turn to overt interference in the election, in behalf of the Republicans. All the Republicans have said they will do Israel's bidding. Slime like Adelson will be key players.
ceilidth on February 21, 2012 10:31 AM:
Hey Patrick--don't insult the truckdrivers of the US. A man who makes money from casinos doesn't need more than an IQ of 80. All it requires is enough knowledge of human nature to recognize that people like to piss away their money and that the desire to get something for nothing increases when they are desperate.
Josef K on February 21, 2012 10:42 AM:
Is there some malady or virus in our genetics where the more money you have, the more divorced from reality your perceptions get? This guy sounds more like Howard Hughes every time he speaks.
Mimikatz on February 21, 2012 10:55 AM:
The Adelson interview explains why it is so hard to raise taxes in the rich. It isn't really about "socialism" or regulation. It's all about keeping their taxes low. It is pure selfishness and greed, and they will fight any tax increase as if it were an existential threat. That's what he means by redistribution--giving to the ungrateful masses. Meanwhile he has no problem redistributing all that money to the venal and unprincipled bunch of GOP operatives and advertising people.
People like Adelson are insecure and need to feel that society thinks they are wonderful. In addition, there is the Israel connection. He has meddled in Israeli politics for years, backing Netanyahu, and now he wants to promote his apocalyptic vision here. That's why he is trying to buy delegates. He is the poster child for reform of money in politics.
Danp on February 21, 2012 11:05 AM:
The more money Adelson and other SuperPac funders spend on negative ads, the easier it is to make the argument that they aren't paying enough taxes. After all, if Adelson can spend this much money on a waste of oxygen like Newt, he can better spend it on pell grants.
FlipYrWhig on February 21, 2012 11:12 AM:
It's not just selfishness and greed. It's also an appalling degree of arrogance. The whole concept behind this guy's politics is that he made himself rich by good old-fashioned hard work, which is why he's so opposed to handouts to lazy bastards that make their lives so cushy. You know, the good old-fashioned hard work of... running a casino, about which Montgomery Burns said, "I've discovered the perfect business. People swarm in, empty their pockets, and scuttle off."
Sgt. Gym Bunny on February 21, 2012 11:41 AM:
You know what I don't like: snarky ass commentary from from people with cute screen names and don't have anything else better to do then troll lefty-librul blogs. Now THAT, my people, is what I'm against.
emjayay on February 21, 2012 11:43 AM:
Why does this guy think all the stuff he complains about was invented by Obama? It's all been around, and more so, for a century or so. How is Obama different from Clinton or Nixon or Eisenhower (remember those top income tax rates?) in these areas? He's not.
Thirty years ago Reagan talked about welfare queens. I know the picture in your head and so did he: Overweight black woman, maybe decorated nails and a bunch of garish gold jewelry, driving a 1959 Cadillac Fleetwood to the liquor store with a bunch of kids in the back seat. (Sorry about that. I appologize.)
Adelson is thinking the same thing. But no need for the old image - Mr. Black Welfare Queen is right there where he has no business being, in the White House. By the way, this is essentially the basis of the whole Tea Party complaint.
T-Rex on February 21, 2012 1:17 PM:
"That scares me because the redistribution of wealth is the path to more socialism, and to more of the government controlling people’s lives. What scares me is the lack of accountability that people would prefer to experience, just let the government take care of everything and I’ll go fish or I won’t work, etc.”
This guy has made his fortune in casinos, which exist for the purpose of gulling people into spending money in the hopes that they'll strike it rich without working for it. The irony is just too rich!
Daniel Kim on February 21, 2012 3:14 PM:
"Perhaps buying a presidential candidate is the last resort before they give up and repair to Galt’s Gulch, leaving the ungrateful parasites of this country behind to fend for themselves."
Maannn! They can't move to the Gulch soon enough! Things would be so much more pleasant without these so-called job creators.
MikeN on February 21, 2012 5:45 PM:
Just want to point out that the vast majority of Adelson's money comes from casinos in Macau, plus his future depends on the new one he's building on reclaimed land between Macau and Hong Kong
Two points:
1) His casinos there are doing well because the Chinese gov't undertook a massive stimulus program to keep their economy afloat when the recession hit in 2008.
2) Beijing can shut him down with a word, meaning any influence he has on an American President will be to act as an agent of the Chinese commies.