American billionaire and one of the world’s most famous hedge fund managers, Bill Ackman, announced his support for former President Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential election on Saturday, July 13. Trump (then-President) had earlier in the day survived an assassination attempt, sustaining an injury to his right ear.
Ackman took to the social media platform X to make this announcement in a lengthy post. In his message, he wrote, “I will officially support Donald Trump. I assure you that I have made this decision cautiously and rationally, relying on as much experiential data as possible.”
“I made this decision some time ago, and many of my fans on X have already learned of this from my posts supporting Trump and criticizing Biden,” Ackman stated.
“I believe that the upcoming presidential election is one of the most impactful elections in my lifetime, so I have taken the appropriate time to articulate my views. I will extensively share these views and take responsibility for them,” he added.
Ackman’s attitude towards Trump has undergone a significant change compared to 2021. Following the events of the January 6 Capitol Hill incident, Ackman had posted that Trump should “resign and apologize to all Americans.”
While Ackman did not elaborate on the reasons for supporting Trump, he mentioned in his post that “it would require a lengthy article to articulate my thoughts. I simply haven’t had the time or urgency to write this article… Recently, I had the privilege of spending a few hours with President Trump, so I will share some firsthand insights.”
With 1.3 million followers on X, Ackman’s announcement of support for Trump garnered over 13 million views and 130,000 likes within a few hours of posting.
Ackman did not mention the shooting incident on Saturday in his post. In a subsequent article, he hinted at the event, stating, “We are in a dangerous moment for democracy. The risk of harm to any candidate would have disastrous consequences for people’s confidence in our system and democracy.”
At the end of May, the Financial Times reported, citing sources, that Ackman had decided to support Trump and would soon announce his decision on the social media platform X.
Ackman is the primary investor, founder, and CEO of the hedge fund Pershing Square Capital Management.
Prior to Ackman, Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, had also announced his support for Trump. Shortly after the shooting incident, Musk posted on X, saying, “I wholeheartedly support President Trump and wish him a speedy recovery.”
On Saturday, the 13th, Trump was shot at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, around 6 p.m., resulting in an injury and bleeding from his right ear. One person in the audience died, and two others were injured. The shooter was shot dead on the spot. The FBI categorizes the incident as an “assassination attempt.”