(Photo
by
Anna
Moneymaker/Getty
Images)
Elon
Musk
has
thrown
his
energy
behind
the
Trump
candidacy,
adding
a
certain
“pasty-rich-white-man-fudning-a-platform-for-bigots”
energy
that
the
campaign
was
absolutely
not
lacking.
Musk’s
efforts
to
aid
Trump’s
bid
include
a
dedicated
super
PAC
and
paying
door
knockers
in
swing
states
who
apparently
just
took
the
money
and
ran.
But
he
also
concocted
a
new
“lottery”
to
pay
$1
million
a
day
to
lucky
people
who
sign
his
petition
about
defending
the
“Constitution”
—
which
is
to
say
the
First
Amendment
and
the
Second
Amendment
and
none
of
that
pesky
stuff
about
voting
rights
or
equal
protection
(unsurprisingly
the
stuff
that
the
“Constitution”
reprinted
in
the
Trump
Bible
skips
too).
Oh,
and
yeah,
this
is
totally
illegal.
Election
law
expert
Rick
Hasen
addressed
Musk’s
million-dollar
initiative
over
the
weekend
at
the
Election
Law
Blog:
Though
maybe
some
of
the
other
things
Musk
was
doing
were of
murky
legality,
this
one
is
clearly
illegal.
See 52
U.S.C.
10307(c):
“Whoever
knowingly
or
willfully
gives
false
information
as
to
his
name,
address
or
period
of
residence
in
the
voting
district
for
the
purpose
of
establishing
his
eligibility
to
register
or
vote,
or
conspires
with
another
individual
for
the
purpose
of
encouraging
his
false
registration
to
vote
or
illegal
voting, or
pays
or
offers
to
pay
or
accepts
payment
either
for
registration
to
vote or
for
voting
shall
be
fined
not
more
than
$10,000
or
imprisoned
not
more
than
five
years,
or
both…”
(Emphasis
added.)
To
further
clarify,
“For
an
offer
or
a
payment
to
violate
Section
10307(c),
it
must
have
been
intended
to
induce
or
reward
the
voter
for
engaging
in
one
or
more
acts
necessary
to
cast
a
ballot….”
There
are
carveouts
to
protect
against
someone
twisting
the
law
to
include
“giving
your
employees
the
Election
day
off”
or
“driving
your
neighbor
to
the
polls.”
But
offering
a
chance
at
a
million
dollars
is
a
far
cry
from
those
safe
harbors.
How
could
Musk
find
himself
on
the
illegal
end
of
such
a
straightforward
question?
Remember,
he
owns
Twitter
right
now
because
he
blew
off
whatever
good
legal
advice
he
received
from
his
Biglaw
counsel
and
waived
due
diligence.
Then
he
dragged
out
his
obvious
loser
of
a
fight,
causing
Twitter
to
run
up
a
massive
Wachtell
bill
that
became
Elon’s
responsibility
when
he
ultimately
honored
his
legal
obligation
and
completed
the
purchase.
Since
then,
he’s
nearly
gotten
a
firm
sanctioned
and
launched
a
wide-ranging
suit
against
a
media
watchdog
for
accurately
pointing
out
how
Twitter
works.
At
least
in
that
case
his
lawyers
successfully
steered
the
case
to
a
judge
with
a
huge
chunk
of
Tesla
stock
and
shows
no
signs
of
having
qualms
about
the
appearance
of
impropriety.
Someone
out
there
who
cares
about
Musk
needs
to
step
in
for
his
sake.
And,
ideally,
that
person
would
have
a
law
degree.
Elon
Musk
Veers
Into
Clearly
Illegal
Vote
Buying,
Offering
$1
Million
Per
Day
Lottery
Prize
Only
to
Registered
Voters
[Election
Law
Blog]
Earlier:
Twitter
Complaint
Demonstrates
That
Every
Lawyer,
Everywhere,
Always
Is
Smarter
Than
Elon
Musk
Elon
Musk
Will
Beat
Twitter!
WSJ
Says
It’s
Obvious…
Assuming
You
Change
Every
Single
Fact
And
Law.
Elon
Musk
Says
Advertisers
Are
Doing
The
RICO
If
They
Don’t
Give
Him
Money
Elon
Musk
Sues
Wachtell
For
Being
Better
Lawyers
Joe
Patrice is
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Above
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Law
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of
Thinking
Like
A
Lawyer.
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