(C) Common Dreams
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Judge rejects request to block Elon Musk $1 million voter giveaway [1]
['Gary Grumbach Dan Mangan', 'Gary Grumbach', 'Dan Mangan']
Date: 2024-11-04
Larry Krasner, Philadelphia's district attorney, center, departs after a hearing at City Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, US, on Thursday, Oct. 31, 2024.
A judge on Monday rejected a request by the Philadelphia district attorney to block a $1 million daily giveaway by Tesla CEO Elon Musk's political action committee to voters in Pennsylvania and other swing states before Election Day.
Philadelphia County Common Pleas Court Judge Angelo Foglietta's order came after an hourslong hearing in which District Attorney Larry Krasner testified that the giveaway by America PAC was a "scam," a "grift" and an "illegal lottery."
"They know what they're doing is illegal, and they are doing everything under the sun to clean it up," Krasner said about Musk and the billionaire's America PAC, which is backing Donald Trump in the presidential election against Kamala Harris.
America PAC to date has awarded $17 million to people in swing states who sign a petition supporting the Constitution and has said it will give out the last $1 million installment on Tuesday, Election Day.
Foglietta in his order said he would later explain his reasons for denying Krasner's request for an injunction in a written decision.
His order does not end the district attorney's civil lawsuit, which alleges Musk and the PAC are violating Pennsylvania lottery and consumer protection laws with the giveaway.
Krasner on Monday said his legal case had actually gotten stronger due to admissions by the PAC that winners of the award were not chosen at random, as Musk had claimed.
Chris Young, the treasurer for America PAC, testified that he was surprised to hear Musk use the term "randomly" at a public event in October announcing the giveaway.
"Not the word I would have selected," Young said.
He testified that recipients of the award were questioned before the prizes were announced, to "feel out their personality, make sure they were someone whose values aligned" with the PAC, which paid them to act as spokespeople.
"The $1 million recipients are not chosen by chance," the PAC's former treasurer, Chris Gober said Monday. "We know exactly who will be announced as the $1 million recipient today and tomorrow."
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[1] Url:
https://www.cnbc.com/2024/11/04/philadelphia-da-says-musk-pac-know-theyre-doing-illegal-lottery.html
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