Isn’t “billionaire oligarch Rebekah Mercer” a Trump supporter?
Rebekah Mercer is a populist supporter; she backed Cruz, then turned to Trump after Cruz dropped his campaign. So, not glowingly endorsing Trump, but very intent on advancing a populist Constitutionalism that both major parties exhibit unwillingness to embrace.
As with many on this site, the Romney election debacle was a turning point for Mercer, and her broader family. The Mercers “became fed up with the Republican establishment after President Barack Obama’s reelection. After Republican candidate Mitt Romney’s loss, Rebekah Mercer chewed out a room full of party donors at a meeting at New York’s University Club for bungling the election,” wrote the Washington Post.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2018/01/05/rebekah-mercer-the-billionaire-backer-of-bannon-and-trump-chooses-sides/
If you dare pick through the reeking leftism, the Post article does contain traces of actual evidence that Mercer may be a stronger conservative mind than Matze. Whereas he forwarded the idea of compliance to just get back online, to be followed up with, I suppose, long negotiations about was was or wasn’t to be allowed to be published, it appears Mercer has now done just that, but with an intervening recess during which to actually architect some strategy to the move. This move to “take half a loaf” as a near-term tactic has obviously rejected Bongino’s “never surrender” stance, and highlights the clash between idealism and pragmatism. The GOP has long been pilloried from the right for failing to apprehend crucial moments when taking a stand for ideals is essential, and for unstrategically capitulating to supposed practicality, but Bongino may be erring, here, at clinging to the ideal when a dose of pragmatism might be the last-hope breath of air the near-corpse needs to survive; in any form, ideal or not.
I don’t take the changes at Parler with any great sense of hope; I think Mercer has a very long row to hoe if she intends Parler be hospitable for believers in Free Speech and rights of conscience. Billionaire or not, the unholy trinity of Amazon, Apple, and Google will be formidable at the negotiating table — if, indeed, they condescend to even show up. I entertain grave doubts whether sane terms for “Community Standards” can be reached, and even more grave doubts that The Triumvirate would actually admit such terms into actual practice even if they could be reached.
Only time, as always, will tell.
Watch this space.