Progressive Prosecutors Are a Target, Elon Musk Says

Tech mogul Elon Musk told advisers shortly before the election that America PAC should challenge “Soros DAs,” referring to a cohort of liberal district attorneys across the country who received support from Soros and affiliated organizations, the Washington Post reports. On a 2023 episode of “The Joe Rogan Experience” podcast, Musk said that Soros was “doing things that erode the fabric of civilization — you know, getting DAs elected who refuse to prosecute crime.”  Musk is currently directing the bulk of his attention on the nongovernment “efficiency” commission he will co-chair for Trump, the people familiar with his discussions said, and his plans for America PAC’s future are still preliminary. But the Tesla CEO said in a live stream on Election Day that America PAC would “aim to weigh in heavily” on future races for the House, Senate and local district attorney offices. Last week, in a post on his social network X, Musk amplified a list of six Democratic DAs described as “Soros-backed,” who have received funding from Soros or affiliated groups and are nearing the end of their terms.

Over the past decade, Soros and affiliated groups have backed prosecutors across the country who campaigned on liberal ideals, like reducing mass incarceration and improving equity in the criminal justice system. Many DAs linked to the liberal donor campaigned on platforms of criminal justice reform and were elected in the wake of the Black Lives Matter protests in 2020. The Law Enforcement Legal Defense Fund, which tracks spending by Soros and affiliated organizations, estimated that as of January, Soros had spent at least $50 million in direct and indirect spending over the past decade to support candidates in DA races. In some Republican circles the terms “Soros-backed,” “Soros-funded” or “Soros DA” are used as epithets for liberal prosecutors who favor reducing mass incarceration or improving equity in the criminal justice system. They are sometimes applied to candidates who received only minimal, indirect funding from the deep-pocketed investor.