Backing Trump in 2016

On the convention’s final night he said: “I am proud to be gay. I am proud to be a Republican. But most of all, I am proud to be an American.” He dismissed the debate “about who gets to use which bathroom,” and said “fake culture wars only distract us from our economic decline.” [1][2]

CNBC reported he would give $1.25 million “through a combination of super PAC donations and funds given directly to the campaign.” [3]

At the National Press Club on 31 October 2016 he said: “the media is always taking Trump literally. It never takes him seriously, but it always takes him literally. I think a lot of the voters who vote for Trump take Trump seriously, but not literally.” [4]

After the election, Trump named him to the transition’s executive committee alongside three of Trump’s children. [5]

It was not his first insurgent bet: in 2011 and 2012 he gave $2.6 million to a super PAC backing Ron Paul. [6]

BuzzFeed News reported in September 2020, from emails, that Thiel hosted a dinner on 29 July 2016 that included Kevin DeAnna, a writer for VDare, a site that publishes white nationalists. Thiel wrote to him afterwards: “really enjoyed meeting you last night.” It also reported he had invited Milo Yiannopoulos to dinner at his home in June 2016. [1]

BuzzFeed said “what Thiel and his guests discussed at their July 2016 dinner also remains a mystery.” It said it sent a detailed request for comment to his representative; Facebook and Palantir declined to comment. [1]