For those of you, who may have only heard her name briefly in the background, she ran unsuccessfully to be the Democratic candidate for President in the Nov 2020, and 2024 elections. She's now running to be Democratic National Committee chair person for the Nov 2028 one. First, let's get money out of the way. In 1896, Presidential candidate William McKinley's de facto campaign manager Mark Hanna famously said “There are two things that are important in politics”. “The first is money, and I can’t remember what the second one is.” All that follows is compiled from my requests to perplexity.ai... Her estimated net worth is $2.5 million as of 2023, and income primarily comes from book sales, public speaking engagements, and online courses, and has written several bestselling books, including "A Return to Love," which continues to generate substantial royalties. Her public speaking engagements can command up to $35,000 per event. She attended public schools in Houston, Texas, including Bellaire High School, from which she graduated in 1970. After high school, she enrolled at Pomona College in Claremont, California, where she studied theater and philosophy for two years, from 1970 to 1972. In 1973, she dropped out of Pomona College during her junior year, without receiving a degree. After leaving college, she had a period she refers to as her "wasted decade," during which she lived a nomadic lifestyle and held various odd jobs, including working as a cabaret singer, cocktail waitress, office temp, and author's assistant. It's worth noting that despite not completing her formal education, she went on to become a successful author, lecturer, and spiritual teacher, writing several bestselling books and gaining prominence through her association with Oprah Winfrey. She is the youngest of three siblings, born to a World War II veteran and immigration lawyer, and his wife. Interestingly, her family background includes a strong legal and social justice tradition. Her father was a left-wing immigration lawyer, and her brother is also an immigration lawyer. She was briefly married once in 1979 to a Houston businessman, a marriage she described as lasting "for a minute and a half". She has been open about being a single mother, and had a child in 1990. In 2014, she ran as an independent for California's 33rd congressional district, finishing fourth with 13.2% of the vote. In 2020, she ran for the Democratic nomination for president. She participated in the first two Democratic primary debates but failed to qualify for subsequent ones due to low polling and fundraising numbers. She suspended her campaign on January 10, 2020, and endorsed Bernie Sanders. In 2024, she again ran unsuccessfully for the Democratic presidential nomination. Before her runs for office, she did have some involvement in politics and activism: In 1989, she founded Project Angel Food, a nonprofit that delivers meals to ill and dying home-bound patients. In 2004, she co-founded the Peace Alliance, a nonprofit organization focused on increasing U.S. governmental support for peace-building approaches to domestic and international conflicts. She wrote "Healing the Soul of America" after her bestseller "A Return to Love," in which she began to embrace her core political message: the belief that large-scale societal change has to start within each individual. In 2002, she reportedly began bringing a more radical political message to her church, focusing on issues like racial equality. Me: Just randomly picking another person active in today's politics for comparison...Donald Trump. Educational History 1. Attended New York Military Academy (1959-1964), a private boarding school. 2. Enrolled at Fordham University in the Bronx (1964-1966). 3. Transferred to the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School of Finance and Commerce (1966-196. 4. Graduated with a bachelor's degree in economics from Wharton in 1968. Income Earning Activities 1. Began working full-time for his father's real estate business after graduation in 1968. 2. Became president of Trump-owned corporations and partnerships in 1974, later named the Trump Organization. 3. Developed various real estate properties, including hotels, casinos, and golf courses. 4. Created Trump-branded products such as neckties and steaks. 5. Hosted the reality TV show "The Apprentice". Political Interests/Activities Before First Presidential Run 1. Cultivated political relationships with New York City Democratic officeholders, following his father's example. 2. Supported both Democratic and Republican parties at different times. 3. Briefly hinted at a presidential run in 1987, taking out newspaper advertisements against Reagan-era foreign policy. 4. Joined the Reform Party in 1999 and formed an exploratory committee for a presidential run, but later dropped out. 5. Considered entering the 2012 Republican primary but decided against it. 6. Became a leader of the "birther movement" during the Obama administration, questioning President Obama's birthplace and legitimacy. His political involvement before his first presidential run was characterized more by cultivating influence and expressing interest in running rather than holding public office or engaging in traditional political activities. And lastly, the money... As of January 2025, his net worth is estimated to be between $6.7 billion and $7.16 billion, according to various sources: 1. Forbes estimates his net worth at $6.7 billion as of January 21, 2025. 2. The Bloomberg Billionaires Index reports a slightly higher valuation of $7.16 billion as of January 21, 2025. His wealth has seen significant fluctuations recently: - His net worth increased by $865 million on January 13, 2025, due to a 20% rally in Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG) stock. - The majority of his current wealth comes from his stake in TMTG, the parent company of his social network, Truth Social. It's worth noting that his net worth has increased substantially since leaving office in 2021, when it was estimated at around $2.5 billion. The recent surge in his wealth is primarily attributed to the success of his media ventures and the public listing of TMTG.
There's another thread about how the Democrat Party leaders conspired to prevent her from being able to get any name recognition, concerned about the risk she might start rising up in the rankings and become a possible viable alternative Presidential candidate party nominee - something that was thought very possible due to the deep unpopularity of Biden, who was the presumed nominee at the time. Democratic Party rigs the nomination election in Florida (posted in 'Political Opinions & Beliefs', Dec 5, 2023) Then as we all know, Biden dropped out at the last moment, and it was seen as too late to hold another primary election, and they did not want to have carry out another primary election, so the nomination was automatically given to Kamala Harris, who was also unpopular and seen as not very competent. Arguably, Marianne might have been more popular with the voters than Kamala, since Kamala had not even been able to come in 6th place out of the various Democratic Party candidates in the previous primary election that took place in 2020.
Very interesting. Right from the start I've suspected the party machine is behind all that happened...now I know the details. Just in case you are not aware of them, she has been sending out a gaggle of newsletters, each of which covers in detail what is happening since our new president began his term. I've received ones on the 28th-27th-25th-24th-23rd-22nd-21st-19th-17th....can't get this much news about the subject anywhere else all in one place. General news outlets have many other news subjects to cover, too. If you go to https://marianne4dnc.com/, and click Join in the upper right, which brings up a pop-up, where you can enter your email address to receive the email newsletters.
I don't agree with all her positions, but I like her more than the establishment politicians they have been pushing like Joe, Kamala, etc.
And, here's a link to Perplexity AI about what she did before becoming a House Rep... https://www.perplexity.ai/search/what-did-laura-gillen-do-befor-Si.BthlFR36JSpttKw8IZA
I've discovered that a block is put up to you for getting to my Perplexity report, asking for an email address...don't know if you did that. If you didn't, but still want to see the report, you could also just bring up perplexity.ai (it's free), and enter the same question I did...What did Laura Gillen do before becoming NY House Rep?, and click the blue arrow.
