It ain’t effectively illegal if no one is enforcing the laws… but it’s scummy as fuck and most people think it should be banned.
No.
But he’ll get away with it anyway.
You can tell because he can afford enough lawyers to not be punished.
Honestly, we are maybe 5 years from the rich hunting is for sport because they can afford the legal team to defend it
Someday we’ll find out it’s been happening for years but the government doesn’t care enough to prosecute it.
I’m only half kidding. I mean, when was the last time a seriously rich person was convicted for murder?
And with the sexual abuse schandaal that where apparently open secrets in certain circles…
What’s anyone gonna do about it? You can’t even prosecute a former president who attempted a coup.
Sign that paper, maybe get the money, still vote for Harris 👍
I was going to do that, but I don’t want my phone number and email on a Musk list. Like, what is he going to do with it? Am I going to get a visit at my house? Are they going to check if I have Harris signs up and then try to sue me for breach of contract? Will the Jan 6th militia get my phone number to try to recruit me for the next terror attack? If I win the $1 million, are they going to expect political donations?
I think the reality is that you just wouldn’t get paid even if you were “selected”
But also? This is an incredibly litigious man who sues anyone and anything. I am not picking that fight.
If you are sued you just say you felt you had to post that because the fediverse is such a liberal haven, but really you voted for Trump - since it is a secret ballot the court will never be able to know if you are telling the truth or not. So long as one person in your jurisdiction voted Trump. The judge should not allow any question of who your voted for to be asked while you are under oath as that violates the secret ballot laws - though I’m not sure if they will.
Let’s be honest- Elon already has your personal data. Cambridge Analytica really spelled out that any anonymity we may think we have is long gone.
No, they can’t sue you for voting for anyone you want. A), they have zero rights as a third party to confirm who you voted for. In fact, the HAVA (Help Americans Vote Act) not only protects you from this, but has actionable penalties should anyone access your voting record outside of state/federal business.
Burner email and phone number
Yeah, create an alternative identity where you’re just a crazy prepper living in the woods. Gimme my money Elmo, dems the rulz! shotgun pump
I have seen a few legal theorists saying there’s a possibility that’s illegal too. And if I had to gamble on who’s more likely to get fucked over between Elon and a regular person? I’d probably be willing to bet all of Elon’s money on the regular person getting shafted
There’s no way they can see your vote. Doesn’t matter anyways.
A country ain’t a democracy if your vote is public. See singapore as an example. The government gives all sorts of benefits and gifts to voters who vote for them.
I meant taking his money to vote. Yes your vote is private but that you voted is not. So if you sign his form, collect his money, and then go vote, I have heard it is possibly illegal. Which is why I’d suggest most people just stay away from this rather than try to game his system
If you look at the law linked in the other post… who makes an offer to… and who accepts an offer to. So both parties would be breaking the law. And I’ll bet Elon will have more ability to avoid consequences than normal people would.
There’s absolutely nothing wrong with doing that and Elon himself said it was fine.
“You can be from any or no political party and you don’t even have to vote in order to sign the petition.”
Not the right question. The question is whether he will see any consequences for it.
No,
https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/597
“”" Whoever makes or offers to make an expenditure to any person, either to vote or withhold his vote, or to vote for or against any candidate; and
Whoever solicits, accepts, or receives any such expenditure in consideration of his vote or the withholding of his vote—
Shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than one year, or both; and if the violation was willful, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than two years, or both. (June 25, 1948, ch. 645, 62 Stat. 721; Pub. L. 103–322, title XXXIII, § 330016(1)(H), Sept. 13, 1994, 108 Stat. 2147; Pub. L. 104–294, title VI, § 601(a)(12), Oct. 11, 1996, 110 Stat. 3498.) “”"
2 years in jail per incident sounds fair
What are the odds he even pays out?
You get paid in a lithium battery fire that just keeps on giving
If there is one person who has proven that legal og illegal is just a question of how much it costs to be illegal, then its Elon
No. It is not.
For those that only want to comment on the headline:
The article basically comes down to because the money is only for people that are already registered to vote, it’s illegal.
And because the money is only for people that are already registered to vote, it’s legal.Probably not but Merrick Garland ain’t going to do anything about it so what does it matter?
What’s that idea where if the title to a news article is a question, the answer to the question is always “No.”? 🤔
Betteridge’s law of headlines
It’ll be interesting to see the behavioral science effect of this even if it’s not requiring the signee to take a specific action. They could start putting out data, albeit inaccurate, that people are leaning right and that might cause uneducated voters to make similar decisions.
I’m thinking about signing up for it. Its not like I have to keep my word. He will have no way of knowing how I really vote.
There are lots of cafes that give free coffee to people wearing “I voted” stickers on Election Day. Is that illegal? Because it’s basically the same thing.
Somehow a free cup of joe or a free million dollars balances out. Yeah basically the same.
Musk isn’t giving everyone a million dollars. He’s giving people lottery tickets, and they might be worth a million dollars but are far more likely to be worthless.
You can buy such lottery tickets yourself, and they cost about the same as a cup of coffee.
Ohh, so any registered voter, that supports any candidate and policies can get this lotto ticket, exactly like your hypothetical coffee shop that just looks for “I voted” stickers?
Youre saying this lottery is fully non partisan and is open to all voters equally?
Youre saying this lottery is fully non partisan and is open to all voters equally?
I’m not the person you were talking too but the answer to your question is no and that’s actually a GOOD thing because in order to get the “lottery ticket” you don’t have to vote. All you have to do is be a registered voter and sign the petition, that’s it and that’s all.
Elon himself “You can be from any or no political party and you don’t even have to vote in order to sign the petition.”
The scheme is still scummy and looks bad, I won’t argue that.
what if the coffee shop only gave out coffee to those with both maga hats and I voted stickers?
Yeah, that’s my point. Their fictional analogy doesn’t track.
One is giving you a gift worth less than $5 for taking part in society, the other is paying you $1M for saying you will vote a specific way. And before you say a gift is a gift, the government has a definition of a gift when it comes to fraud, waste, and abuse. Heck, if we go by your insane equivocation of the two things, those “I voted” stickers are the same as getting free coffee.
