An illuminating piece from Jane Meyer:
“Mercer is the
co-C.E.O. of Renaissance Technologies, which is among the most profitable hedge
funds in the country. A brilliant computer scientist, he helped transform the
financial industry through the innovative use of trading algorithms. But he has
never given an interview explaining his political views. Although Mercer has
recently become an object of media speculation, Trevor Potter, the president of
the Campaign Legal Center, a nonpartisan watchdog group, who formerly served as
the chairman of the Federal Election Commission, said, “I have no idea what his
political views are—they’re unknown, not just to the public but also to most
people who’ve been active in politics for the past thirty years.” Potter, a
Republican, sees Mercer as emblematic of a major shift in American politics
that has occurred since 2010, when the Supreme Court made a controversial
ruling in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission. That ruling, and
several subsequent ones, removed virtually all limits on how much money
corporations and nonprofit groups can spend on federal elections, and how much
individuals can give to political-action committees. Since then, power has
tilted away from the two main political parties and toward a tiny group of rich
mega-donors.”
Who Runs America?
https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/politics/mercer-bannon/
Who Runs America?
https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/politics/mercer-bannon/