Economics

But Rockbridge has largely kept its activities stealthy, mindful of how groups of wealthy conservatives like the Koch Network have drawn attacks from both liberal detractors and Republican wannabes.

As caravans of black S.U.V.s shuttled in the billionaires from their private jets last week, members of the Rockbridge roster could be spotted around the hotel: Rebekah Mercer, the scion of one of the most prolific Republican donor families, greeted well-wishers in the lobby. Working the happy-hour scene at the hotel bar were two close friends of Elon Musk’s — Ken Howery and Luke Nosek, whose time with Mr. Musk at PayPal made them megawealthy themselves.

And it was hard to miss Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, the 6-foot-5 cryptocurrency investors and former Harvard heavyweight rowers made famous in “The Social Network.”

Attendees, with white-and-red gift bags and lanyards, knew to be closelipped when approached by hotel interlopers or by the Times reporter, who was not invited to the closed-press festivities. But a copy of the agenda listed remarks by several tech billionaires, including the Anduril co-founder Palmer Luckey and the venture capitalist Marc Andreessen, who spoke about his support for deregulating technology and the mixed reaction in Silicon Valley to his endorsement of Mr. Trump, according to attendees….

“It’s the domestic ‘Davos in the desert,’” said the Rockbridge backer Omeed Malik, referring to the annual business conference in Riyadh, and Donald Trump Jr.’s new business partner…

Rockbridge, according to literature distributed to donors this year, “builds lasting political infrastructure” and “strives to replace the current Republican ecosystem of think tanks, media organizations and activist groups that have contributed to the party’s decline.” The ambition is palpable, but some longtime attendees privately question whether the group has come close to delivering on those goals…

Even before the event officially began, Ms. Wiles was in Las Vegas, headlining an outdoor Saturday dinner at a steakhouse for about 30 Rockbridge donors and friends. Around the jubilant open bars and music-filled ballrooms, attendees openly traded notes on what Trump administration roles they might get and debated whether Mr. Musk was the world’s most powerful person.

“Generally everyone at Rockbridge was very happy that technologists and politicians are working together directly again and not openly hostile toward each other,” said John Coogan, the co-founder of Soylent who attended. “It’s no longer a question of whether technology will drive the future, but how we guide its impact. So it makes sense that tech billionaires and the political elite are partying together.”

Mr. Vance did not attend, a rare absence and a disappointment to some loyalists. But his victory made Rockbridge suddenly a hot ticket and spurred some last-minute sign-ups. After sometimes letting prospective members attend for just $5,000, Rockbridge raised the minimum cost to $25,000 (although some people said privately that they had been able to get in for less).

The cost of Rockbridge membership ranges from $100,000 to be a “limited partner” to $1,000,000 for a “principal partner,” according to a prospectus seen by The Times.

That money goes toward the eight vehicles that Rockbridge steers, including four dark-money 501(c)(4) organizations, two super PACs, a donor-advised 501(c)(3) fund for nonprofit activity and the Rockbridge Network umbrella organization, an L.L.C. Mr. Buskirk’s main super PAC, Turnout for America, has raised at least $25 million this year…

Mr. Vance’s new job is likely to make Rockbridge and its 150 members influential players in pushing the Trump agenda.

In part, that is because Mr. Trump has had a sometimes frosty relationship with traditional Republican donor groups, including the libertarian Koch Network and the more hawkish American Opportunity Alliance. Rockbridge, by contrast, was born in the Trump era and shares his edginess, if not the wealth of those rival networks.

“There’s a decision that big conservative donors have to make here,” said Oren Cass, an influential conservative economist in Mr. Vance’s orbit who is close with these major donors. “Up until the 2024 election, there was at least a colorable case to be made that maybe Trump isn’t going to succeed.”

That case is now no longer colorable, Mr. Cass said. “Who is stuck in the cargo hold of the old ship and going down with it — and who actually wants to be relevant to the future of conservatism?” he asked.

Mr. Buskirk told donors in Las Vegas that during the campaign, Rockbridge had about 3,000 people in the field working on Mr. Trump’s behalf. Now, after the Republican victory, Mr. Buskirk said, it was time for Rockbridge projects to grow even bigger.

It's politically incorrect to mention this, but at some point we have to talk about the deep, fundamental crisis of morality that is afflicting American conservatives and their families.
These are not good people, and we're not helping anyone by pretending that their values are not to blame.

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— Nathan Goldwag (@goldwagnathan.bsky.social) November 29, 2024 at 11:37 PM