This is Brian Lairr's Daily Politics Podcast from WNYC Studios.

It's Wednesday, July 31st.

I'm Kusha Navidar, a host here at WNYC filling in for Brian today.

We turn to the 2024 presidential campaigns and one

group of wealthy donors that are increasingly throwing their financial support behind each

side of the political divide. Mega wealthy tech entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley, once considered

supporters of the Democrats, are now some of the

loudest voices in the room who are backing the Republicans. And while most Americans may not

care too much about the opinions of a few elite tech execs, their outsized financial influence

has the potential to really shape the race.

In fact, big tech has already shaped the race.

A small group of right-wing tech entrepreneurs have been credited with helping Donald Trump choose J.D. Vance as his running mate, according to a recent article in The Washington Post.

And joining us now to break it all down is Aaron Griffith, New York Times reporter covering tech companies in Silicon Valley.

Hey, welcome to WNYC, Aaron.

Thanks for having me.

Great to have you here.

So, Aaron, the wealthy group of tech executives who are splintering along the political divide, the folks that you write about

are sometimes called the PayPal Mafia. Can you tell us more about who they are, how they know one

another? Sure. Those are certainly some of the most prominent people that are kind of involved in

this political infighting. And it has expanded to encompass many others but the

PayPal Mafia is kind of this iconic group of tech founders and investors who all worked

together at PayPal you know formed some very deep and lasting bonds there and then they all went on

...