By Tamar Alexia Fleishman
David Bossie is an icon in conservative political circles. In 2015, he was ranked No. 2 in Politico’s 50 most-influential people in American politics. Bossie served as deputy campaign manager to the 2016 Trump presidential campaign. He’s the president of Citizens United, the political advocacy group that won the landmark Supreme Court case Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (2010). That case opened up political donations from both for- and non-profit corporations, unrestrained by dollar amount or timing.
In February 2022, Bossie spearheaded an RNC effort to expel Reps. Adam Kinzinger and Liz Chaney from the GOP conference, which ended up as a censure.
Bossie gets his point across in artistic ways: He has authored several publications and books, as well as produced films. He has just released “Rigged: The Zuckerberg Funded Plot to Defeat Donald Trump,” which you can watch online for $4.99.
Though leftist media have said snarky things about “Rigged,” it seems that they never saw it. The 40-minute film doesn’t make outlandish or unfounded claims. Rather, it puts visuals to the uncontested fact that Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla Chan, donated over $400 million to “help” certain localities run the 2020 election and heighten voter turnout. They made no effort to conceal these donations; rather, they were quite boastful.
Many prominent Republicans make cameos in the film, including Kellyanne Conway, Sen. Ted Cruz and, of course, President Trump. Whether you believe the donations were nefarious or not may be beside the point. A week after the film debuted at Mar-A-Lago, Zuckerberg, through spokespeople, announced that his election donation was a one-off. Like the saying goes, “There are no conspiracies, no coincidences.”
I recently interviewed David Bossie by telephone.
I wondered since media are now so stereophonic and people on the left are not offered seminal facts about the 2020 election, does he feel his movie will break through?
“I believe that the biased corporations that control the media do not want to talk about Mark Zuckerberg: it undermines their narrative. I don’t expect them to cover it. But the power of conservative media is incredible today! One week after the premiere, Mark Zuckerberg announced that he was not going to [contribute to elections] – because of our film!”
I asked Bossie if I am correct in assessing that the “establishment” GOP is – and always has been – a participant in Kabuki theater of being country-club polite, that with a certain segment of the party, challenging the 2020 election is just not “nice.” I wondered if the strategy is to get through to them or go around them.
“Actually, it’s a combination,” explained Bossie. “Educate them first with facts and evidence. … They are open to passing laws (to protect elections). Fifteen states have already signed laws. Five Democratic governors have vetoed laws: Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, North Carolina and Louisiana.”
I asked Bossie if there were any additional funds actually needed to run elections during the pandemic. He readily concedes that there were jurisdictions, such as large cities, that needed funding.
“I would submit that every two years, county boards never have enough resources. (With the pandemic) there was standing in lines, social distancing, volunteers not showing up. But don’t use the cover of COVID to do ‘altruistic’ things like Zuckerberg. Only a very small percentage went to masks, plexiglass, hand sanitizer.”
As a practicing attorney and knowing the Citizens United history, I wondered where the line is drawn with campaign contributions by entities. I posed the hypothetical question of a Republican PAC donating to red counties in equal amounts as Zuckerberg – wouldn’t that just be a First Amendment right?
He clarified: “Well, no. Those are different issues. Organizations’ expenditures are discoverable. 501(c)3s (charities/non-profits) aren’t supposed to be involved in politics. They filed their IRS 990s (the tax forms required of the non-profits) in January 2022! (Before) it was totally off the books.”
I noted that Bossie is being given credit for Zuckerberg vowing not to give money to election systems in 2022. I asked him what it was that convinced Zuckerberg and presumably his lawyers to come to that decision.
He responded, “In my opinion, he was blamed by the left in 2016 for letting Trump and Hillary get Facebook data. This $400 million was a penance, in my opinion. He thought his fingerprints would not be on it. Conservatives use Facebook; it was a simple business decision.”
I questioned why nobody seems to be putting Zuckerberg’s wife, Priscilla Chan, into legal crosshairs, wondering if she shouldn’t be facing her own severe consequences. Bossie responded, “It’s their money. She should be held by the same standards.”
Bossie noted that with all documentaries, the challenge is to get the content, the story arc and to keep it interesting, but that with this film, it is noteworthy for interviewing President Trump at Mar-A-Lago.
I pointed out that New York Magazine, Vanity Fair, etc. – supposedly representing America’s elite, educated class – only had the most superficial, facile and lowbrow comments about his film, mostly involving what wine was served. I further noted that these magazines anxiously employ investigative reporters to cover the deaths of fashionable socialites, but utilize cut-and-paste techniques regarding the crux of our democracy.
Bossie agreed. “Right. That goes to the Big Lie. If they give any credence to the fact that there may be facts to support (that there were problems with the election), that’s everything to them. That’s why they have to be so superficial.”
I posed a comparison of working with other people to create art being like different twists of viewing through a kaleidoscope. I wanted to know his process when working with his favorite collaborators, like Steve Bannon.
Bossie responded happily, “Steve Bannon has always been a great collaborator. We’ve been collaborating the last 15 or more years! It is an incredibly creative process with Steve. We have a film in development.”
Thank you, David Bossie, for your generous time. We look forward to your future projects!
Tamar Alexia Fleishman was the youngest girl to solo with the Chicago Symphony. Having traveled the world, Tamar shares flavors, history, arts and insightful interviews with fascinating folks from all walks of life. She’s held her own on TV with celebrities like Bill Maher, Greta Van Susteren, Dr. Phil and Peter Frampton. Tamar has a B.A. in Political Science from Goucher College and a J.D. from the University of Baltimore. She is a practicing member of the Maryland Bar and a Kentucky Colonel. Her blog, where she brings you the best the world has to offer, is www.TamarMarcoPoloStyle.com.
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