Since the early 2000s, writer and activist David Horowitz has been at the center of a movement that claimed to defend free speech while portraying Muslims and leftists as existential threats to Western civilization. In the aftermath of 9/11, Horowitz called for the profiling of “Palestinian” and “Islamic” people and infamously stated that “the Palestinians are Nazis.”

Through the David Horowitz Freedom Center (DHFC), founded in 1998, he and his donors built a media and policy network that shaped the careers of nearly every major pro-Trump conservative figure active today. The Southern Poverty Law Center designated the DHFC a hate group, and it has received anonymous dark money routed through Donors Trust, which has also funded white nationalist causes.

Following Horowitz’s death on April 29, 2025, Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk acknowledged his influence: “Without David Horowitz, I’m not sure Turning Point USA would exist. Over 90% of our earliest major donors were introduced at a David Horowitz event—thanks to his warm endorsements and generous introductions. His support opened doors that would have otherwise remained closed.”

Elon Musk’s growing alignment with Israeli policy became publicly visible in 2024, when he forged a surprise relationship with Prime Minister Netanyahu. But his ties to the Freedom Center ecosystem began earlier. Musk has amplified Freedom Center talking points, including a study falsely claiming that USAID helped fund the Taliban—a narrative later used to justify calls to defund the agency.

More consequentially, when SpaceX sought to raise $750 million in January 2023, the lead investor was the venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, co-founded by Ben Horowitz—David Horowitz’s son.