Many in tech squarely behind Clinton on eve of DNC
SAN FRANCISCO — When the Democratic National Convention convenes in Philadelphia on Monday, it can count on one constituency: Silicon Valley.
A slew of prominent leaders have lined up behind presidential nominee Hillary Clinton with contributions, endorsements and high praise for her tech policy plan.
The comprehensive plan has been lauded by tech executives and associations for its emphasis on expanding education in STEM and computer science, high-speed Internet access for most Americans, fortified cybersecurity and push for immigration reform. It goes further, they say, than tech policy plans proposed by President Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney in 2012.
Dilawar Syed, president at Freshdesk, a maker of cloud-based, customer-service software, singled out Clinton's push for STEM education and increased diversity in tech, a lingering problem in the industry for decades.
"Training 50,000 teachers to teach computer science is an example of the kind of progressive policy Hillary has put forth to ensure we develop talent for a 21st Century economy," Syed says.
Clinton wants high-speed Internet in every U.S. home by 2020
"Hillary's plan was wildly applauded — we're excited that one of the candidates laid out a technology and innovation policy," says Linda Moore, CEO of TechNet, a bipartisan organization that represents about 70 tech companies, including Apple, Google, Facebook, Amazon, Uber and Microsoft. TechNet has contacted the Trump campaign about its tech policy, but has yet to hear from them, she says.
Clinton's support is also the byproduct of a fiercely anti-Trump sentiment. The Republican nominee's adamantly anti-immigration and pro-trade protectionism has unsettled many tech executives.
Trump’s “continued demands for tech hardware companies to immediately bring all manufacturing back to the USA reflects a fundamental disconnect from the reality of today’s global business environment,” says Bradley Lautenbach, senior vice president of marketing and product design at Light, maker of a high-end camera.
CLINTON'S LONG LIST OF TECH SUPPORTERS
Clinton, who has frequently traveled to Silicon Valley over the years, has secured endorsements from Box CEO Aaron Levie and Salesforce.com CEO Marc Benioff.
She's collected about $3 million in contributions from Facebook Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg, venture capitalist Chris Sacca and Elon Musk, the visionary behind Tesla Motors, SpaceX, SolarCity and Hyperloop One, according to Crowdpac, a nonpartisan political crowdfunding web site. VC legend John Doerr contributed $500,000 to Clinton's Super PAC.
Political newspaper The Hill discovered through Federal Election Commission data that employees at some of tech’s biggest firms — Facebook, Apple, Google and Uber — have donated most of their money to Clinton.
Shervin Pishevar, a venture capitalist who has invested in Uber, hosted a fundraiser for Clinton at his San Francisco home in April, where some ponied up $353,400 to have dinner at a table with Clinton, actor George Clooney and his wife, Amal Clooney.
It's far from a tech landslide for Clinton, however. At least two prominent Hillary backers in 2008 — Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates and VC legend Vinod Khosla — did not contribute donations to her 2016 presidential bid.
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