Romney Super PAC Could Receive $100 Million From Sheldon Adelson

Dr. Miriam and Mr. Sheldon Edelson at the 2011 AIPAC "Better Together" policy Conference. Photo: Maxine Dovere.

Casino mogul Sheldon Adelson and his wife Dr. Miriam Adelson have jointly contributed $10 million to Mitt Romney’s campaign for the upcoming presidential election in November. Though this has been the amount contributed so far, the Adelsons plan on continuing donations that could go as high as $100 million according to a source quoted by Forbes Magazine.

Adleson, 78, is the chairman and CEO of the Las Vegas Sands Corporation, and originally supported Newt Gingrich’s super PAC, “Winning Our Future”, before Gingrich dropped out of the Republican presidential primaries in May. According to Forbes, Adelson is worth $24.9 billion and is one of the fifteen richest people in the world, ranking number eight on the Forbes 400 list. His $ 10 million donation is the equivalent of the average American family worth $100,000, contributing $40. Romney’s Super PAC, which received the money, is called “Restoring Our Future.”

According to a source quoted by Forbes Magainze, Mr. Adelson’s endorsement for Romney is due to his belief that the U.S. is currently in the midst of what he sees as Obama’s ‘socialization’ of America. Mr. Adelson is also concerned with securing the safety of Israel according to the source, and believes the 2012 presidential election is the most significant one of his lifetime.

Show Mitt The Money

There are no limits to the amount of monetary contributions that can be given to super-PACs, due to the Supreme Court’s Citizens United ruling, in which the court held that the government is prohibited from restricting independent political expenditures by corporations and unions based on the First Amendment.

Nevertheless, while Restore Our Future is barred by federal law from directly assembling with the Romney campaign, many of the presumptive Republican nominee’s former aides are part of the organization’s administration. Throughout the GOP primaries, the organization spent around $45 million to help Romney’s effort and reported in May that it had around $8 million in cash reserves heading into the general election.

“What scares me is the continuation of the socialist-style economy we’ve been experiencing for almost four years. That scares me because the redistribution of wealth is the path to more socialism, and to more of the government controlling people’s lives,” explained Mr. Adelson to Forbes in February. The drawback of “big government” and raising taxes, according to Mr. Adelson, is that less people will be likely to engage in philanthropy.

“I’m afraid of the trend where more and more people have the tendency to want to be given instead of wanting to give,” he continued telling Forbes. “People are less willing to share. There are fewer philanthropists being grown and there are greater expectations of the government. I believe that people will come to their senses and not extend the current Administration’s quest to socialize this country.”

In a twist of irony, the Adelson’s fortune has actually increased during the Obama administration, more than just about any other American, according to Forbes’ data. Nevertheless, even back in February, Mr. Adelson had criticized the Obama’s administration’s current economic policy and is not shy about lending his support to the frontrunner against him.

“I’m against very wealthy people attempting to or influencing elections but as long as it’s doable I’m going to do it,” said Mr. Adelson.

The Adelsons are very active in Jewish causes and are ardent supporters of Israel with their contributions of hundreds of millions of dollars to Jewish causes. Dr. Adelson is Israeli and the couple’s sons all carry Israeli passports.

During former president George W. Bush’s administration, the Adelsons were chosen to serve on  an honorary delegation to accompany the president to Jerusalem for the celebration of the 60th anniversary of the state of Israel. In 2006 the Adelsons contributed $25 million to the Yad Vashem Holocaust Martyrs’ and Heroes’ Remembrance Authority in Israel, as well as continuing to support Taglit Birthright with over $100 million in contributions.

But will the Adelson’s pick influence other Jewish voters to vote Republican? According to Dr. Ben Dworkin of the Rebovich Institute for NJ Politics at Rider University: “No I don’t think it will have any relevance at all.”