Billionaire endorsed by Bernie Sanders-founded PAC bent on defunding 'the oligarchy'

Tom Steyer.

A week after disgraced former congressman Eric Swalwell exited the California governor's race under a cloud of shame and controversy, billionaire Tom Steyer has won a key, if ironic, endorsement in the race -- from a political action committee that was founded by Bernie Sanders and exists to "eliminate the influence of billionaires."

The political action committee, Our Revolution, announced the endorsement on Monday in a post on X, admitting right up front that "we've never endorsed a billionaire." The group went on to say, "Yes, Tom Steyer is a billionaire. But it matters what he is doing with that power: pushing for taxes on the wealthy, expanding universal programs, and dismantling corporate influence in our politics." Our Revolution says Steyer reached out to the group's leadership seeking the endorsement. 

Our Revolution mentioned another motive, possibly the primary one, behind the endorsement of Steyer, acknowledging the potential that Republicans could take the top two spots in the upcoming June primary, meaning a Democrat candidate would be shut out of the general election in November: "This is also about winning," the group said. 

"I’m honored to receive [the] Our Revolution endorsement, and as Governor, I’ll work tirelessly to realize our shared vision of a California that works for working people," Steyer said in a post on X in response to the backing. In another post on X Monday, Steyer declared, "I'm the most progressive candidate in the race."

Indeed, he has pledged allegiance to some of the left's most radical causes, including promising to ensure California remains a sanctuary state if he's elected. "As governor, I will hold ICE agents and their leadership accountable if they break the law in California," Steyer said on the same day he received the endorsement.

Steyer accumulated his vast wealth, estimated at $2.4 billion by Forbes, with Farallon Capital, a San Francisco-based hedge fund he founded 40 years ago. He sold his stake in the company in 2012. According to Forbes, his net worth has nearly doubled since 2021.

U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders, founder of Our Revolution.

U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders founded Our Revolution in 2016 after his upstart presidential campaign ran out of steam. The group shares its name with a collection of essays written by Leon Trotsky, the Russian Marxist, in the early 20th century, though it's not clear if Sanders specifically named the group after the Trotsky writings. 

Our Revolution tends to endorse the most radical of Democrat candidates, including members of the so-called Squad, like AOC and Cori Bush, making Steyer seem like an unusual choice to endorse for a group founded by an avowed socialist.

In fact, Sanders hadn't weighed in on the endorsement as of Tuesday morning. His only mention on social media about billionaires on the same day of the Steyer endorsement was to taunt them. "It’s time for Congress to listen to the American people and pass a wealth tax on billionaires," Sanders said on X. 

In 2019, when Sanders was running for president again, he discussed Steyer mounting a White House run. “I like Tom – he is a good guy, he’s a friend of mine – but I’m not a great fan of billionaires getting involved in the political process,” Sanders told Fox Business at the time. “Billionaires, and this is not just Tom Steyer, billionaires should not be able to spend unlimited sums of money trying to buy elections.”