Source: Politics<\/p>\n
LA JOLLA, Calif. \u2014 A California software magnate is preparing to spend potentially millions of his own dollars on a brutal crusade to take down Elon Musk \u2014and he\u2019s doing it all as part of a quixotic and below-the-radar campaign for the U.S. Senate.<\/p>\n
Dan O\u2019Dowd, founder and chief executive of Green Hills Software and a self-described billionaire from Santa Barbara, has in recent days reserved nearly $650,000 in TV airtime to run in the state, according to data from ad-tracking services obtained by POLITICO. Separately, three people familiar with O\u2019Dowd\u2019s plans, including a national Democratic official working to protect Senate incumbents, told POLITICO that it\u2019s just the start of a barrage of ads from O\u2019Dowd targeting Musk and Tesla over its self-driving technology. Green Hills makes competing software to Tesla\u2019s and O\u2019Dowd has publicly derided Musk\u2019s electric vehicles as poor performing and dangerous. Musk has responded with broadsides in kind.<\/p>\n
But it\u2019s not simply a personal vendetta driving the new electoral consideration and accompanying spending. O\u2019Dowd has filed paperwork to run for office and his name will appear on the California ballot. Two of the people with knowledge of his strategy said that he has hired experienced Democratic consultants to help guide the campaign. His team, those people say, includes the celebrated ad maker Mark Putnam and O\u2019Dowd has received help from veteran operative John Blair, moves underscoring his seriousness and raising questions about his political ambitions. O\u2019Dowd and his team wouldn\u2019t speak on the record or didn\u2019t respond to inquiries. People who have been in contact with O\u2019Dowd said Friday that they expected he would give clarity about his run in the coming days.<\/p>\n
Others familiar with the rollout stressed that O\u2019Dowd\u2019s team has privately been adamant he\u2019s not trying to unseat freshman Democratic Sen. Alex Padilla<\/a>, who was appointed last year when Kamala Harris ascended to the vice president job. Instead, O\u2019Dowd\u2019s play for the Senate is likely being carried out as a cost-saving measure and to significantly enhance the likelihood that networks will air his TV spots. Running for office entitles him to the lowest available ad rate in the run-up to the election \u2014 a perk that could save him considerable money depending on the ultimate spend. But a bigger advantage, two people familIar with his plans said, is the higher degree of first amendment protection<\/a> a political run could give him for his loaded claims against Tesla.<\/p>\n O\u2019Dowd, who is running as a Democrat and previously launched a Senate bid in the 90s, has a broadcast reservation starting the week of April 18 and continuing at least through the following week, the records showed.<\/p>\n Though those around him insist he\u2019s not trying to actually win election, the sheer magnitude of O\u2019Dowd\u2019s planned spending, combined with an election system in California that allows the top-two candidates regardless of party to advance to a runoff, is sending shock waves through the Democratic party in California and Washington.<\/p>\n \u201cAll signs point to this guy being able to write an eight-digit check to this effort. And that could create the saturation and penetration you need to make something happen in California,\u201d one of the people, a Democratic Party official, said.<\/p>\n Democrats fear that O\u2019Dowd\u2019s ad campaign alone could land him in a runoff \u2014 potentially complicating what until now was viewed as a straightforward path forward for Padilla. While Padilla is well-liked among Democratic voters, rising from a councilman in Los Angeles to the Capitol in Sacramento and then to secretary of state, he is far from a household name statewide.<\/p>\n A self-funded TV blitz focused on drivers\u2019 safety and vilifying Musk\u2019s company could resonate with casual voters. That\u2019s especially true at a time when the electorate is turning against the status quo and Musk has turned himself into the b\u00eate noire of Democratic politics, even more so amid his current attempts to buy Twitter and turn it into a private company.<\/p>\n A representative for Tesla did not return a request for comment.<\/p>\n At minimum, an O\u2019Dowd run could leave California\u2019s first Latino senator fighting more than he otherwise needs to for the seat, and cause headaches for Democrats when they\u2019re trying to retain their razor-thin Senate majority in states that are legitimately competitive.<\/p>\n \u201cThese self-funded candidates put no limit on their aspirations and can buy their way into elected office,\u201d said Yvonne Gutierrez, managing director at Latino Victory Project, which advocated for Padilla\u2019s appointment to the Senate in early 2021. Lately, the group along with others have been picking up on the increasing chatter about O\u2019Dowd. \u201cWith respect to Sen. Padilla, it does pose a real danger because they have the resources to be on the air 24\/7.\u201d<\/p>\n Added Gutierrez: \u201cWe are proud of the work [Padilla\u2019s] done and [are] dedicated to keeping him here. So we\u2019re all hands on deck because we can not take anything for granted.\u201d<\/p>\n A Padilla campaign spokesperson said he\u2019s focused on continuing to deliver for Californians. The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee issued a statement of support from its chair.<\/p>\n \u201cAlex Padilla is key to maintaining and expanding the Senate Majority, and I am proud to endorse him on behalf of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee,\u201d said DSCC Chair Sen. Gary Peters<\/a> (D-Mich). \u201cAlex is a powerful addition to the United States Senate because of his life experiences and the important fights he takes on, especially for immigrant families. Californians are well served by this proud son of immigrants and the impact he is making for his state and country. We look forward to Alex\u2019s reelection and continued success that is driven by his deep concern for his constituents.\u201d<\/p>\n Padilla has about $7 million banked for his first Senate run, and California\u2019s expensive media markets require heavy spending to move the needle even marginally.<\/p>\n Operatives and allies closely aligned with Padilla stressed that the coming ads in his race should motivate voters and jumpstart more aggressive fundraising on his behalf. They also argued that even if O\u2019Dowd\u2019s single-issue round-house kick to Tesla doesn’t violate election laws, which legal experts said on its face it doesn\u2019t appear to, it\u2019s a damaging tactic that undermines the democratic process.<\/p>\n \u201cIt allows them to use elections as \u2019pet projects,\u2019 said Angelica Salas, executive director of the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles, another close ally of Padilla\u2019s office.<\/p>\n Salas said she doesn\u2019t expect O\u2019Dowd to be successful: \u201cMost people aren\u2019t billionaires and they will see right through what this really is about.\u201d<\/p>\n Still, Democrats in recent weeks have privately urged O\u2019Dowd not to follow through on his spending plans, the two people familiar with the discussions said. But they still came away with the feeling that he didn\u2019t grasp the potential unintended consequences and didn\u2019t believe his assault on Tesla would pose a real threat to Padilla. The people said his team made clear that not only did he not wish to beat Padilla, but that he supported his reelection and may say as much publicly.<\/p>\n Already, O\u2019Dowd has been tweeting a stream of web videos of Teslas crashing. Earlier this year, he placed a full-page<\/a> ad in The New York Times against Musk that assailed Tesla\u2019s technology as \u201cthe worst software ever sold by a Fortune 500 company\u201d and warned users not to be the company\u2019s \u201ccrash test dummies.\u201d<\/p>\n Musk responded in a January tweet<\/a>, dismissing O\u2019Dowd and his company. \u201cGreen Hills software is a pile of trash,\u201d he wrote.<\/p>\n