All that money yet no common sense. A venture capitalist wants his $2.5 million back after choosing to support the non-profit True the Vote’s efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election results by filing numerous lawsuits across the nation.
Not only were the lawsuits meritless, but they were also withdrawn in many courts. Obviously, Fred Eshelman, owner of the healthcare-focused investment company Eshelman Ventures LLC, didn’t think about Trump and his team’s claims before contributing tons of money for their legal battles. According to the website Law & Crime, the Houston-based non-profit vowed that they would get the results they wanted or return their contributions.
Eshelman provided a multimillion-dollar contribution to help the group find evidence of what they claimed was mass voter fraud. He was convinced by Catherine Engelbrecht, the president of True The Vote, to help the cause. From there, he transferred $2 million two days after Election day.
The 12-page complaint states: “Based upon Ms. Engelbrecht’s representations regarding defendant’s comprehensive plans to investigate, litigate, and publicize illegal balloting and other election fraud as part of its Validate the Vote 2020 efforts, plaintiff agreed to give an initial gift of $2 million to the defendant on the condition that the funds would be used to fund the initial stages of the Validate the Vote project. Specifically, $1 million of that initial pledge was intended to fund efforts to communicate the defendant’s findings via the contemplated litigation. Plaintiff advised he would contribute more as the project progressed.”
What’s more puzzling is the fact that he contributed many times over what the charity brings in per year. In 2016 and 2017, the non-profit reported less than $500,000 in contributions.
The president estimated that the cost to determine the votes and overturn the results in the legal pursuit would be $7,325,000.
Eshelman’s complaint gives an inside look at the group’s plan to change the outcome. The plan was to hire James Bopp, who would file suits in seven battleground states, and from there, they would subpoena state election officials and use the data to mark irregularities.
But now we know that plan didn’t even almost work. Now Eshelman and probably others are left with “vague responses, platitudes, and empty promises” from the group who said they would follow up with status updates.
“Specifically, in response to requests for specific and data relating to potential whistleblowers and how their allegations fit into an overall narrative, Ms. Engelbrecht would simply respond with vague comments like: ‘We are vetting’ or ‘They are solid,’” the complaint states.
“Ms. Engelbrecht also routinely ignored repeated requests for memoranda and written reports to summarize defendant’s efforts to identify and obtain information from whistleblower witnesses,” it continues.
Eshelman is left wondering what happened to the memos, reporters, and whistleblowers the group claimed they had as well as why four of the complaints filed in Wisconsin, Georgia, Michigan, and Pennsylvania were voluntarily dismissed.
After Bopp dropped the Wisconsin suit, Eshelman asked for his money back. “Please wire the balance of my contributions to my account as shown below,” Eshelman wrote in a Nov. 17 email included as an exhibit to the complaint. “Also send a full accounting of all monies spent out of the $2.5M, which should be de minimis since nothing was accomplished over the 10 or so days.”
It took Engelbrecht five days to respond: “Since Mr. Eshelman asked for his money back, we have started to put together the costs and expenses of the project that he helped fund.”
“If we see the $2 million set to wire, we can hold off on filing the lawsuit in federal district court that we are preparing, which will seek a full refund, plus attorney’s fees and damages,” Eshelman’s attorney Ron Jacobs responded.
This wasn’t Eshelman’s first time supporting Trump—he maxed out when he donated 2,700 to his campaign and with a $100,000 donation to the political action committee Trump Victory in 2017—but it may be his last.
