No one ever accused Peter Thiel of being transparent. But his decision not just to support Donald Trump but to speak on his behalf at the Game of Thrones episode called the Republican National Convention is a real head-scratcher. His peers in Silicon Valley consider the move bizarre, but then again, that’s in line with Thiel’s unconventional ideas.
What makes the PayPal founder’s endorsement so perplexing is that he is much more a libertarian than a traditional small-government conservative (or whatever Trump is selling). In the 2012 election cycle, Thiel single-handedly kept Ron Paul’s campaign afloat. Paul believed in as little government as possible, proposing to eliminate Medicaid, Medicare and Social Security. By contrast, Trump has promised never to cut entitlements and has even promised a more fabulous version of Obamacare.
How you square the two philosophies is hard to figure. It’s not like Thiel doesn’t have options. Gary Johnson is a perfectly good libertarian candidate running for president this year, who has been pro-marriage equality for years.
Still, Thiel made his case to the convention on closing night. Some of his reasons were out in the open. Others, not so much. Here’s a rundown of the reasons why, against all odds, Thiel supports Trump.
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Thiel dislikes foreign intervention.
Trump believes in a non-intervention policy even when it comes to NATO allies. Ron Paul was also famously opposed to military operations, even bucking his party to vote against the Iraq War. Thiel made a point in his speech of complaining about past military excursions, with a characteristic Thiel twist: “Instead of going to Mars, we have invaded the Middle East,” adding “Donald Trump is right. It is time to end the era of stupid wars and rebuild our country.”
Business tycoons stick together.
The band of truly rich businessmen is a small one, and it’s a strange fraternity. It’s a shared experience, like the military or old school ties. That may make for a deeper connection to Thiel than political philosophy. Thiel may think that a business background is better for the country than a policy background because businessmen (and it is men) like himself know better.
He’s hoping that Trump will shatter government.
One country’s chaos is a wealthy man’s opportunity. A Trump presidency would be such a disaster that the country could really become a free-for-all. A man who has written that democracy is incompatible with freedom may be willing to bet that a dysfunctional government will break the abiding social construct.
He wants to loosen libel laws.
Thiel’s vendetta against Gawker on behalf of Hulk Hogan highlights Thiel’s antipathy toward the press. That’s something that he has in common with Trump, who wants to “open up” libel laws so “we can sue them and win lots of money.”
Maybe the gay thing actually matters.
Thiel hasn’t exactly been the poster child for LGBT rights, but he did make a point during his speech to say that he was “proud to be gay.” Despite his penchant for attacking everyone different, Trump has largely been silent on gay issues. Perhaps Thiel saw that as a major advance in the Republican party. It certainly is a step up from Ron Paul, who published homophobic articles in his newsletters. As if in gratitude, in his acceptance speech Trump telepromptered his way through a reference to the Pulse massacre, promising to “protect our LGBTQ citizens from the violence and oppression of a hateful foreign ideology.” Perhaps in Thiel’s universe, this is what constitutes progress.
Alistair Wiseman
Really, Queerty? This is your version of what happened at the Republican Convention tonight?
Sad. Pathetic. Dishonest.
oddchild1
@Alistair Wiseman: Hypocrisy is claiming to be a libertarian then using the the force of the courts in order to silence a private business rather than allowing the free market to take its course. Peter Thiel is a fake Libertarian.
leobaga
I was one of the few gay supporters of Trump from the very beginning. I always believe in him. He’s a true New Yorker – a true supporter of gay rights. I predicted he will change his tune once he becomes the nominee. I was right.
His moving speech in support of our community is very telling:
After saying he will “protect our LGBTQ citizens from the violence and oppression of a hateful foreign ideology,” he went off script and thanked the cheering GOP crowd, saying, ““And I have to say as a Republican it is so nice to hear you cheering for what I just said. Thank you.”
1EqualityUSA
Trump will let the Heritage Foundation vet his Supreme Court Justices. They’ll put the grim in pilgrim. Presidents come and go, though justices serve for life. They stand to make unions toothless, roll back marriage equality, making it a state by state vote upon our inalienable rights, so that should we vacation in one of these states, our rights would not carry from place to place. Healthcare would, again, be threatened, women would be considered suspects, in a criminal sense, should they spontaneously abort, and “religious liberty” would set a dangerous precedent. Vote Blue. May the GOP go obsolete for a century.
Mo Bro
To the grievance merchants of the left . . .
– Thiel says “I’m proud to be gay” and the REPUBLICAN crowd cheers him wildly.
– Trump thanks his REPUBLICAN audience for cheering his position on defending gays from violence.
. . . and yet you still insist that Republicans want to lynch us, while believing Muslims—who are provably murdering us—just want to give us a big hug.
You’ve proven that nothing—no amount of goodwill or appeasement—will alter your indoctrinated perception, and you’re doomed to an existence of victimization and misery.
Luckily, there are those of us who are with Trump and want to help him make the U.S. great again, and we’ll drown out the naysayers through all of it.
Brian
Trump is very tolerant of gay-identifying people. What I like about Peter Thiel is that he’s not obsessed with identifying as gay. Gay is a part of him, not the whole him.
Too many gay-identifying men act as if their entire being is based on gay.
rextrek
@Brian: SCREW YOU…..the Time for being nice to rightwing Freaks is WAY OVER! …and Fuck any LGBT person that Votes GOP….FU to the enth degree……all LCR’s should be SHUNNED!!!!!!!!!
drelocks15
@leobaga: OMG that’s hilarious! Oh wait…are you being serious?
n900mixalot
@Brian: then why did he even bring it up? We all KNOW he’s gay. No need to tell everyone … Unless … maybe he IS obsessed with identifying as gay … It’s the first self-descriptor he mentioned.
Masc Pride
Both speeches were hilariously awkward. You could totally tell the five-letter initialism was brand new to Trump as he slowly and almost hesitantly read it off the teleprompter each time. Could almost hear him thinking, “Is that Q a typo?” lol
AtticusBennett
it’s only the most pathetic and cowardly of gay men who insist that Orlando was “islamic terrorism”
“i’m scared to come out to my parents, they’re really liberal”, said no Queer kid. ever.
the GOP doesn’t care about the massacre in Orlando. they don’t care about the high numbers of LGBTQ homeless youth, and suicides. they, in fact, are the reason the culture of queer youth suicides remains.
but they’ll totally pretend to care about LGBTQ people if it means they get get their braindead base to foam at the mouth of Islam.
it’s no wonder the right-leaning commenters who troll this site are just a bunch of anonymously-commenting wimps. you boys are pathetic. and you know you are. none of you have the orbs to make any statements from a place of visibility. and you never will. you’re spineless cowards.
BitterOldQueen
I’m not a republican, but as a political junky I was as glued to the RNC as I will be to next week’s DNC. I admit that I perked up a bit when Trump invoked “LGBTQ citizens” in his speech–getting the inclusive alphabet soup into a republican convention speech in a positive way for the first time) and was very close to checking out his ten-point plan for whatever as he made his way through the sentence, “protect our LGBTQ citizens from the violence and oppression of a hateful…” and then he had to go and modify “ideology” as being strictly “foreign.” Now, I’m all for protecting the ‘mos from ISIS and their sympathizers, hangers-on, and wanna-bes, but the most threatening hateful ideology at the moment is christian fundamentalism grown right here at home; that’s the one I’m scared of.
stanhope
Thiel’s money doesn’t make him right, sane or moral. When giving his speech, he had the eyes of a madman. I was thinking the gay people have their own clarence thomas in this bitch.
Paco
@leobaga: But he made sure not to mention protecting us from the violence and oppression of the hateful domestic ideology of the Republican platform and people like Tony Perkins.
Mo Bro
@Brian: You can always tell when a man’s entire identity is based solely on his sexuality when you walk into his house and see the “art” adorning his walls is almost exclusively depicting naked men.
AtticusBennett
behind every gay trump supporter is the father who wishes he’d sprung for that abortion. the commenters in here are proof.
Hank
if Thiel was even proud of being gay, he would not have expected to be out by Gawker. He believes much more in making money than in LGBT cause.
DCguy
Another Caitlyn Jenner, so rich that they don’t think the GOP platform attacks on lgbt Americans applies to them.
GayEGO
Peter Thiel has something in common with Donald Trump, they are both businessmen. Perhaps Peter will boycott his business from various functions that Trump tries to hold against us.
mjmarkic
@leobaga: You truly are delusional…he will destroy us all…
mjmarkic
Trump is a total sociopathic egotist…He never hears anyone except himself…He is a hollow shell with no true human feelings or capacity…he only knows how to control and denigrate…He only knows $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ like Mr. Thiel…their $$$$$$$$$$$$$$ protects them it’s their Mexican Wall…Sadly America has become one of the most ignorant and fearful countries in the world thanks to the Reagan, Bush regimes and the current GOP…God help us all if Trump should win…the end will be very near…
Alistair Wiseman
What do Democrats hate more than a billionaire, gay Republican getting a standing ovation at the Republican Convention after announcing he is a proud to be a gay Republican?
Nothing.
Hank
It’s easy to be gay and support trump because Thiel is a billionaire. These types of laws reach millionaires and billionaires? No! He would go walking with his boyfriend/husband in the most finest places affronting the conservatives. Many of the laws, anywhere in the world, only serves to poor people.
Richpontone
There is only one reason why Thiel loves The Repugs is that he loves keeping more of his money than he loves the LGBTQ community.
Why?
Because he can get all the love he needs by spending bucks for it.
And if this Nation elects Trump and LGBTQ people burn at the stake like in The Dark Ages of the 10th Century, then Thiel can spend some bucks and relocate to Queer Friendly Spain.
For Thiel to be proud od being Gay and Repuglican, is like a Jew being proud of being a Nazi.
Self loathing comes in many forms, like encouraging the destruction of first your rights, then your Thiel wealth and then your life.
Unfortunately, many innocent LGBTQ lives will be ended as well.
Alistair Wiseman
@AtticusBennett:
As usual, you have it backwards. Do you really think you are brave because you regurgitate the same, safe, politically correct groupthink that all your friends and the mainstream media parrot? Do you ever go against the mainstream and have an original thought of your own? You don’t – you are an echo chamber. You are part of the leftist groupthink and a precious example of an approval seeker.
You have previously stated to me, “i’ve [sic] seen you on Facebook. you’re [sic] a tired, homely, troll of a man.”
Really? You’ve seen me on Facebook? I’m tired, homely and a troll?
I have never been on Facebook. I do not, nor ever had, an account on Facebook.
Since you know so much, please tell me more about myself. Tell me more about how my family hates me. Tell me more about my Facebook account.
This is the third (maybe fourth) time I have brought this to your attention without any kind of acknowledgement from you. What kind of gay man bullies and tries to ugly-shame another gay man? All because of politics?
To use your own words. You know what is “pathetic”, when “spineless cowards” and “wimps” don’t have the integrity, character or decency to acknowledge their own error when they bully and ugly-shame other gay men for their own selfish political gains.
That is you, Atticus Bennett.
dwes09
@Alistair Wiseman: As noted by many, Trumps speech was a pack of lies. Statistics regarding taxes, crime, infrastructure, etc give obvious lie to his claims and puffed up bragging. To bring the truth to bear against lies is hardly “politically correct groupthink”. I suggest you log cabin types learn to think critically and take a good hard look at the world you are buying into where YOU will be a pariah and a freak in the eyes of stupid self righteous “faith based” folks. You and Brian and the others are the “step-n fetchits” of the new century. You are not welcome in the big white republican tent except as a dancing freak for their amusement. Where they to actually get into office and legislate your life options and freedom away you will see them bare their teeth when you balk. They think you only fit to get the crumbs that “trickle down” from their white christian “moral” table.
Even as they gave your uncle tom an ovation you may be certain most were thinking that a poor sinner like him would benefit from the conversion therapy your party’s platform supports and encourages. You may be certain they were glad he did not buy into our liberal “perversion of god-ordained marriage” they intend to do away with if they get the chance.
And don’t counter this with “bengazi”, “emails”, and “crazed muslims”. YOU have bought into those tall tales/deflection tactics, not us. We understand the difference between reality and wishful thinking.
Chris
Yawnnnnnn and stretch. So I binge-watched Netflix last week. Did I miss anything on TV?
Thad
Why Thiel supports Trump? He’s rich.
Looking at the Republicans’ stated platform is reason enough for gay people to distrust them.