Zuckerberg's PAC Feeding Money Directly to These Immigration Backers
We know FWD.us has been working both sides of the aisle with covert TV ads, but the social network's corporate PAC is also pushing its immigration agenda with a more traditional ploy: cash handouts. Here's who's on the take, and for how much:
Donation watchdog Open Secrets tabulated the public data and found Zuck's favored pols:
The single biggest recipient of cash from the PAC was Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), a key figure in negotiations to get the recent immigration bill passed in the Senate. Bennet, a member of the so-called "Gang of 8," has long been a proponent of overhauling immigration rules...Bennet picked up $10,000 from Facebook's PAC — $5,000 to his campaign committee and $5,000 to his leadership PAC.
Of course, Republicans are happy with FWD.us, too:
The PAC also gave the maximum of $5,000 to other members of the Gang of 8, including $5,000 each to the leadership PACs of Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.). The PAC donated to $16,000 to five members of the 13 members of the Senate's subcommittee on immigration, refugees and border security.
This is the way everything works in DC, sure—business as usual. And that's why Zuck will win.
Photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty
Update: A previous version of this post mistakenly identified the donor entity as FWD.us, a lobbying group which Facebook leads, rather than Facebook's own PAC.