A political action committee heavily funded by green energy advocates and Democrat donors is running ads against Republican candidates, accusing them of betraying former President Donald Trump, according to Federal Election Commission records and campaign filings.
The unusual campaign highlights a strategic effort by the Invest in Tomorrow Coalition PAC to influence Republican primaries using pro-Trump messaging, despite its main donors' ties to Democratic causes and climate activism.
The PAC, which received more than 88% of its $6.78 million in funding from Ripple co-founder Chris Larsen, has spent millions opposing Republicans who supported a rapid phaseout of renewable energy incentives. Larsen, who contributed $1 million in cryptocurrency to the pro-Kamala Harris Future Forward PAC, has publicly supported Democratic figures such as California Governor Gavin Newsom. In May, Larsen described the PAC's efforts as "political warfare," stating, "The worst that you want in a political fight is for your opponents to think you’re weak."
Major Donors and Spending
Federal Election Commission data show that the Invest in Tomorrow Coalition PAC is largely bankrolled by Larsen, with additional contributions from Mark McCall, former head of the Department of Energy’s Loan Programs Office under President Barack Obama, and Jigar Shah, who led the same office under President Joe Biden. Michael Brune, former executive director of the Sierra Club, co-founded the PAC.
The PAC has spent $2 million opposing Rep. Andy Ogles in Tennessee, more than $650,000 against Rep. Chip Roy in Texas, and reportedly plans to spend $1 million targeting Ralph Norman in South Carolina’s GOP Senate primary. All three Republicans were criticized for supporting the phaseout of renewable energy incentives in the One Big Beautiful Bill. Both Ogles and Roy lost their primaries after facing negative ads labeling them as insufficiently loyal to Trump. Norman, who lost a gubernatorial primary after similar attacks, is now running for Senate against Darlene Graham, sister of the late Sen. Lindsey Graham.
"The clean energy industry’s political muscle is only getting stronger and more intimidating. So our hope here is that clean energy will go back to being a bipartisan issue, and maybe one of the few issues that all Americans can agree on. But before we get there, we’ve got to continue our retribution tour and take out a few more members who have voted the wrong way."
— Michael Brune, former Sierra Club executive director and PAC co-founder
Messaging Strategy and Targets
The PAC’s ads have focused on accusing Republican candidates of betraying the MAGA movement, with slogans such as "MAGA Traitor" and claims that candidates "turned their back on MAGA more than once." The group has also considered targeting Rep. Barry Moore in Alabama’s Senate race, Rep. Nancy Mace in South Carolina’s governor race, and Rep. Byron Donalds in Florida’s governor race. Moore and Donalds won their races, while Mace lost.
The PAC has supported some Republican candidates but has spent more on opposing sitting members who backed renewable energy phaseouts. The strategy comes as climate activism faces challenges, with the Environmental Protection Agency under Trump reducing funding for climate projects and major donors like Bill Gates scaling back their rhetoric. Greenpeace is also appealing a $345 million court judgment that could threaten its operations.
PAC Response and Broader Context
The Daily Signal reached out to the Invest in Tomorrow Coalition PAC and companies led by Larsen, McCall, and Shah for comment on their use of MAGA-themed messaging and candidate targeting decisions, but did not receive responses before publication.
The PAC’s approach reflects a broader trend of outside groups using targeted messaging to influence party primaries, sometimes employing rhetoric that appeals to the base even when the group’s policy goals differ from those of the targeted party. The effectiveness of this strategy, and its impact on the future of bipartisan support for clean energy, remains to be seen.
FEC records for the Invest in Tomorrow Coalition PAC can be viewed here.
