Billionaire Power Plays and the Fuentes Farce

Julie Bolejack

— 3 min read
Billionaire Power Plays and the Fuentes Farce
Photo by Rob / Unsplash

Let’s be clear: Nick Fuentes isn’t the worst conspiracy theorist in the room—he’s merely the most performing one. Yet even the dingiest spotlight can illuminate truths. His latest rant—that JD Vance was “planted” by a clique of elites, including Peter Thiel, Tucker Carlson, and Elon Musk—resonates because it reflects the billionaire-driven reality of modern political theatre.

From Appalachia to the Tech-Political Conveyor Belt

Yes—JD Vance’s trajectory resembles a Silicon Valley grooming operation. Peter Thiel, the PayPal and Palantir co-founder, played a foundational role—hiring Vance in 2017 at Mithril Capital, infusing $15 million into his 2022 Senate campaign, introducing him to Trump, and backing his venture firm Narya Capital with tens of millions.

Meanwhile, a New Republic exposé confirms that Tucker Carlson, Elon Musk, and David Sacks orchestrated a hush-hush lobbying campaign behind the scenes, nudging Trump toward elevating Vance politically.

Even silicon connection logs reveal that David Sacks dumped nearly $900,000 into PACs supporting Vance, and though Musk’s rumored $45 million pledge didn’t materialize fully, he publicly signaled enthusiastic support via social media and public statements.

This isn’t far-fetched. The Financial Times ran a feature, dubbing Vance’s rise a carefully engineered blend of venture capital, populist branding, and elite networking.

So, Fuentes Isn’t Entirely Off—Is He?

On this point, Fuentes may not be lunatic—he’s just tone-deaf. The substance of his claim is valid: modern populist careers can be incubated in billionaire-funded think tanks and media megaphones. The term “manufactured nationalism” isn’t satire—it’s a feature of today’s political landscape.

But that doesn’t excuse the hypocrisy when someone built on the extremist fringe criticizes someone else for being a shadow puppet.

The Hypocrisy of the Self-Appointed Truth-Teller

Fuentes castigates a candidate he claims has no autonomy. Yet he himself remains a puppet of online outrage, monetizing hate and paranoia for clicks and notoriety. The irony? He condemns elite-controlled actors while waiting by the velvet rope, hoping billionaires or media outlets will take a flyer on him. He wants to expose the strings—but he’s still dangling from them.

JD Vance Was “Planted”—But Not by Peter Fuentes

Let’s not sugarcoat Vance’s rise—it is engineered. He’s a polished front-man: venture-backed, media-dubbed, data-driven, and strategically networked. Fuentes is right about that part.

But if we’re dismantling the puppet-master illusion, we must dismantle Fuentes, too. If he truly saw the strings, he’d know that agitating for an allyship with power looks less like principled exposure and more like performer’s envy.

The Real Takeaway

  • Yes, JD Vance’s rise owes much to Silicon Valley’s kingmakers.
  • But the architecture of his ascent—influencers, PACs, venture capital—is normal in today’s American political economy.
  • Nick Fuentes sees the system—but the problem is, he wants a seat in it, not its overthrow.

Final Curtain

So here’s the deal: Nick Fuentes is right about Vance—but wrong about… everything else. His strawman claim that Vance is a hollow puppet is accurate. The mirror, however, shows the only hollow puppet in the room is Fuentes himself.

Billionaire strings run deeper than most admit. So yes—JD Vance was “planted.” But Fuentes? He’s just watering the garden of his own illusions and watching for someone to notice.

📰 Further Reading (Receipts)

Julie Bolejack, MBA














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