Business Leaders, Billionaires Respond After Biden Withdraws from Race

Musk wrote on X shortly after Biden announced his resignation: “I believe in an America that maximizes individual freedom and achievement. It used to be the Democrats, but now the pendulum has swung to the Republicans.”

“My smartest friends, including those in the San Francisco Bay Area who have long been Democrats, are thrilled with Trump/Vance,” he added.

Musk, who patted himself and X on the back when Biden made the announcement on the platform (along with other social platforms), said on July 13 that he “fully” supports Donald Trumpjoin the list of some Silicon Valley’s top investors support the former president.

Cuban was one of the first business figures to react to Biden’s announcement, writing on X: “Father time is invincible.”

The businessman previously said he would continue to support Biden after Biden’s poor showing in a debate in late June.

“Of our two candidates, one would be no problem for me to hire as a sales representative,” Cuban previously said. it is said Trump in X’s post. “He is very good at making people feel comfortable and quickly conveying what he wants to sell.”

Sacks, an entrepreneur who founded the venture capital fund Craft Ventures, wrote in X shortly after Biden’s announcement. “Biden said he would address the nation later this week,” he wrote. “Why doesn’t he do it now? This is too hasty. Pelosi wants him out now.”

Sacks also posted on X: “First they tell us there’s nothing wrong with Biden. Then they threaten to destroy him if he doesn’t drop out of the race. Now they’re calling him a ‘hero.’ How can you not be disgusted by these people?”

In his third post, Sacks said the Democratic leader “believes in selection, not elections.”

Sacks, who previously supported Democrat Hillary Clinton, helped organize a $12 million fundraiser for Trump in June and donated $1 million to the Senate campaign of Trump’s vice presidential nominee, J.D. Vance.

Smith, Microsoft’s president and vice chairman, posted on X that Biden has “dedicated his life to public service” and called Sunday’s announcement “another example of that commitment.”

“I want to thank him for all his accomplishments and for his continued service from now until his inauguration,” he continued. “Microsoft looks forward to working with his Administration for the remainder of his term.”

Smith recently testified before the House Homeland Security Committee about Microsoft’s security lapses. Microsoft was in the spotlight Friday over a global service disruption caused by a flawed update from cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike.

Hoffman, co-founder and executive chairman of LinkedIn, posted on X that Biden is “a leader who acts with America’s best interests at heart.”

“Not running for reelection is one of the most selfless acts we’ve ever seen from a politician in modern American history,” he continued. “This is what’s right for our country — and the future of our democracy.”

Hoffman added that Harris “is the right person at the right time,” and said Trump and Vance’s agenda would “wreak havoc on the American people.”

“When faced with a choice between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump, I trust the American people to make the right decision for our country,” he wrote. “The Biden-Harris administration has put this country on the right track. It is time for us to come together. I wholeheartedly support Kamala Harris and her candidacy for President of the United States in our fight for democracy in November.”

In January, Hoffman donated $2 million to the Granite for America super PAC, which led a write-in campaign in New Hampshire for Biden’s campaign.

Hastings, Netflix co-founder and executive chairman, wrote in X: “Democratic delegates need to pick the winners of the swing states.”

Hastings is one of the big Democratic donors who has called on Biden not to run again.

“Biden needs to step aside to give a strong Democratic leader the chance to defeat Trump and keep us safe and prosperous,” he previously told The New York Times.

Khosla, a billionaire investor in OpenAI who founded Sun Microsystems, posted on X that Democrats should look for a “more moderate candidate” who could beat Trump.

He said Gov. Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan and Gov. Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania “would be a great thing for America not to be held hostage by MAGA extremists and DEI extremists.”

In response to Musk’s comments supporting Trump, Khosla responded: “It’s hard for me to support someone who has no values, who lies, who cheats, who rapes, who degrades women, who hates immigrants like me. He might cut my taxes or reduce some regulations, but that’s no excuse for accepting his depravity in personal values. Do you want a President who will slow climate change for a decade in his first year? Do you want his example for your children to set as values?”

Branson, the business magnate who founded the Virgin Group, said at X that Biden’s choice was “a smart and principled decision by a smart and principled man and provides an opportunity for the next generation to move America and humanity forward.”

Earlier this month, Branson wrote on Virgin’s website, “Now is the time for him to consider what’s at stake and step down from another run,” and said the president “can still do tremendous good in the world.”

Yang, a businessman who is seeking the Democratic presidential nomination in 2020, wrote in X that Biden has shown “tremendous leadership” and urged the Democratic National Committee to “show equal leadership by holding an open process to determine the best candidate to take on Trump-Vance in November.”

“The goal should be simple: win,” he added, arguing in another post that the way to do that is to pick “a ticket that is generally more appealing and electable than Trump.”

French Gates, co-founder of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, said at X that Biden “deserves our deepest gratitude for his decades of service in government and his effective leadership from the White House at a pivotal time for our country.”

French Gates praised Biden’s efforts to keep the economy humming, guide the U.S. through the pandemic and work toward equality and opportunity for Americans. He also highlighted Biden’s advocacy for women and girls.

“We have seen what the Trump administration has done, and we cannot risk a repeat of the Trump administration,” he wrote.

French Gates formally endorsed Biden in June, the first time he has endorsed a presidential candidate.

At X, Benioff, the Salesforce CEO, shared a link to a Time magazine cover story about Biden’s withdrawal from the election and an image of the magazine’s cover showing Kamala Harris walking into the frame as Joe Biden exited.

Benioff last week on X wished President Trump a “full and speedy recovery” after the assassination attempt. He added: “May his body be healed, his mind be soothed, and his soul be comforted. May he be blessed with strength and courage, and a speedy recovery. There is no room in our country for political violence.”

Levie, CEO of cloud company Box, posted on X praising what he called Biden’s “incredible leadership” and encouraging Democrats to seize the opportunity.

“The Democratic Party has a clear opportunity to create a winning platform and narrative that is pro-tech, AI, science, immigration, and entrepreneurship,” he wrote in X.

Summers, a former Treasury secretary, wrote in X that he was refocusing his attention on what he called Trump’s “rampant dishonesty, demagogy and dangerousness” now that Biden has dropped out of the 2024 race.

“Regardless of partisanship, Donald Trump demonstrated his unfitness to lead America with his strident and inappropriate comments today,” Summers wrote. “Defeating him is the most important electoral priority of my life.”