Tech billionaire Peter Thiel, who played a big role in JD Vance’s shockingly viable Senate campaign and who engineered the ousting of Gawker, has opened up on whether he should pack up and leave the United States. Thiel shared his thoughts in the latest episode of the Joe Rogan Experience podcast during a discussion about his recent relocation from San Francisco to Los Angeles, and he further detailed his bigger considerations in terms of eventually moving from California or the United States altogether.
Rogan also brought it to less apparent destinations for Thiel and, while admitting it’s not easy, Thiel said he can’t find an alternative to the United States. He admitted that while the United States has its problems, the rest of the world is doing “a lot worse.” Thiel was quick to point out such alternatives as Florida, New Zealand, and Costa Rica, but admitted that wherever he would go, it would be a one-time decision made in moving there.
Were it an understatement to say how much Thiel has had an impact on the political rise of Vance, after all, he not only funded Vance’s Senate run but also came to connect him to former President Donald Trump, mending bridges with the two men after numerous fights.
Unlike other people, Thiel has had the money to pick up at any time and leave. He has even envisioned building a floating libertarian paradise outside the reach of any nation. For him, unfortunately, the dream was found to be financially infeasible and New Zealand scrapped it in 2018.
On the podcast, Thiel poured out his dissatisfaction with this country and California, part of the country where he is, where, because of high taxes and liberal policies, many conservatives and libertarians have long ago bolted. Yet Thiel noted that the prevalent right-wing gripe that California is irretrievably poorly governed is a misconception. Thiel noted that the state’s macroeconomics are strong, with a GDP comparable to Germany’s and Japan’s, despite having a lower population.
Thiel went on to say that this resilience in California was based on the “religion” of “wokeism,” which he seemed to indicate was much like Wahhabism in Saudi Arabia. He described that just like Saudi Arabia is maintained by oil wealth despite political dysfunction, so too does California stay afloat because of overwhelming economic strength amid political hardship.
In sum, Thiel’s thinking about leaving the U.S. just reflects his general concern about governance and ideological climates. Any decision on his part, to leave or stay, would be a bombshell.