With J.D. Vance as VP, Peter Thiel would finally have Trump right where he wants him
Why donate money to Trump when you can buy a candidate?
By Paul Bradley Carr
The San Francisco Standard
July 15, 2024

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It was Thiel who, in 2017, hired Vance to work at his Mithril Capital firm (Mithril is a metal featured in “The Hobbit”) and later invested heavily in Vance’s fund Narya Capital (Narya is a ring in “The Lord of the Rings”). Thiel then donated more than $15 million to Vance’s Senate campaign and personally escorted Vance to Mar-a-Lago to patch over his former “Never Trump” stance.

Before Thiel announced that he was taking a break from democracy, he introduced Vance to David Sacks, his old PayPal Mafia colleague. Sacks promptly donated $1 million to a pro-Vance Super PAC and hosted a fundraiser for him. Sacks and Vance later worked together to organize Trump’s only San Francisco campaign fundraising event, aimed at nudging the candidate to further embrace and deregulate cryptocurrency. Thiel has reportedly made more than $1.8 billion from Bitcoin and other currencies.

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Absent a Father Figure, J.D. Vance Found Notable Mentors

The New York Times
His father gave him up for adoption when he was 6. Mr. Vance has sought to fill the gap with people who have helped him, including Peter Thiel, the tech investor and entrepreneur.