bulwark
This week we got word that two of the world’s most consequential billionaires have decided to pay tribute—literally—to Donald Trump. Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg are each gifting $1 million to Trump’s “inauguration committee.”
The inauguration fund is a way for rich people to funnel money to the incoming president that he can then use however he sees fit, completely unfettered and under cover of darkness. The inauguration fund is no different than feudal lords approaching the new king with gifts of rubies, or mobsters showering a new mayor with envelopes of cash.
In other words: It’s pure tribute.