Amazon’s $1 million contribution to President-elect Trump’s inaugural fund mirrors Meta’s donation.
E-commerce giant Amazon has confirmed a $1 million donation to President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration fund, accompanied by a free livestream of the ceremony via Prime Video, a contribution also valued at $1 million. This move is widely seen as an olive branch from CEO Jeff Bezos.
Bezos’s ownership of the Washington Post, a frequent Trump critic, adds context to this donation.
“Bezos is donating through Amazon,” a source told the Wall Street Journal. Amazon later confirmed this to CNN.
Beyond the monetary donation, Amazon’s Prime Video will stream the inauguration. A visit from Bezos to Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort is also planned for next week.
With a net worth nearing $250 billion, the donation’s symbolic nature is evident. Bezos has subtly shifted from overt Democratic support, praising Trump’s “tremendous grace and courage under literal fire” following a July assassination attempt. He overruled the Washington Post’s endorsement of Vice President Kamala Harris, sparking internal and subscriber discontent.
As reported earlier this week, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg also contributed $1 million to Trump’s inaugural fund. Zuckerberg dined with the president-elect at Mar-a-Lago last month.
These gestures are viewed as attempts to reconcile previous substantial donations to Democrats and organizations in Democratic areas, as well as the earlier ban of President Trump from Facebook and Instagram following the January 6th Capitol riot.
Inaugural committee donations are unlimited but must be reported to the Federal Elections Commission.
Bezos recently stated at a New York Times event his intention to dissuade Trump from viewing legacy media as “the enemy of the people.”
“What I’ve seen so far is that he is calmer than he was the first time and more confident, more settled,” Bezos observed, suggesting Trump might be receptive to his influence.
Meanwhile, Elon Musk, SpaceX’s owner, has become a prominent Trump ally, notably after purchasing Twitter in 2022, easing censorship, and subsequently endorsing Trump with an estimated $200 million donation to his reelection campaign.