Who are Langley’s favorite political candidates?

The 22101 zip code is home to many very influential people. First, it includes Langley, Virginia, where the CIA is headquartered. But that’s not true only CIA. The zip code also includes the nearby community of McLean, Virginia, home to many diplomatic residences and military contractors such as Booz Allen Hamilton, former employer Edward Snowden.

So it’s fair to say that many residents of 22101 are very concerned about US national security policy. One of the ways they, like all Americans, express themselves is by donating to political campaigns. And, like all Americans, they are required to disclose those donations, along with their name, address and occupation, to the Federal Election Commission (FEC), which publishes them online. Although privacy and consequences of freedom of speech There is little requirement for this type of disclosure, but the 2023-24 FEC filings make for interesting reading.

Again, not everyone who lives in Langley and McLean works for the CIA, and not everyone who works for the intelligence agency lives in the same zip code. But with the local economy so tied to the deep state and the military-industrial complex, the flow of campaign donations says something about the tendencies of America’s national security elite.

The top five recipients of donations from 22101 were all Democrats: the Harris Victory Fund, the Democratic National Committee, Kamala Harris for President, the Democratic Massive Victory Fund, and the Democratic Political Action Committee ActBlue. (In sixth place was Project LincolnThis shouldn’t come as much of a surprise, given that President Joe Biden won Fairfax County more than 2 to 1 in 2020.

Likewise, incumbent Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine far outperformed his Republican challenger Hong Cao in the 22101 ZIP code. So did Democratic incumbent Rep. Jennifer Wexton before she dropped out of school racing for health reasons; her successor, Suhas Subrahmanyam, has since also managed to defeat Republican challenger Mike Clancy in 22101.

Perhaps more interesting, however, is how residents of 22101 donate to the candidates they can’t vote for and for whom there won’t be represent them. Outside of Virginia, the campaigns that received the most Langley-related money were hawkish Republicans and moderate Democrats. In other words, this is how someone who wants the military-industrial complex to remain powerful will vote.

Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.), who faces tough bid for re-electionmade the most money — $183,219 — from 22,101 residents. He has become more militant over the past few years. In 2015 he supported US-Iran deal on nuclear issues and economic sanctions. Nearly a decade later, he took a much more aggressive stance. dismissal anti-war protesters like “10 or 12 of these kids who are ‘pro-Palestinian’, ‘pro-Hamas’ or ‘anti-Semitic’ – I don’t know what the hell they are” and propose legislation, stop the Chinese from the purchase of American farmland.

The next largest recipients are all Republicans running for Senate: Larry Hogan of Maryland, incumbent Sens. Ted Cruz of Texas and Dave McCormick of Pennsylvania. (Cruz, who ran for president in 2016, made a name for himself for myself as an ultra-hawk in Washington, especially on Middle East.) Former Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), who resigned after being removed from his position as Speaker of the House of Representatives by his own party, he finished in fifth place.

Cruz And McCarthy well known for their hawkish stance on foreign policy. McCormick got his way military service the centerpiece of his campaign, supported by the US military against drug cartels in Mexico and stated that Iran is “original sinMiddle East. Hogan, the former governor of Maryland, made his first foreign policy speech last month, vowing to fight “isolationists” and increase U.S. support for Taiwan, Ukraine and Israel.

Not surprisingly, Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Arkansas) received $116,272 from 22101 residents, ranking 10th among campaigns run by non-Virginians. There is probably no one else in the US government thirsty for conflict And permanent American empire than Cotton, who first entered Conservative politics in 2006, calling for arrest of journalists who reported on government surveillance programs and was almost chose become director of the CIA in 2017.

It’s also not surprising that Rep. Elissa Slotkin’s (D-Mich.) re-election campaign and Rep. Adam Schiff’s (D-Calif.) re-election campaign also made the top 20. Slotkin is a true CIA veteran who loves flaunt it. During her first congressional campaign in 2018, she scared a rival campaign staffer repeats the names of his pets.

Schiff was the highest-ranking Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee from 2015 to 2023. early critic National Security Agency (NSA) surveillance, later Schiff defended the NSA And became famous as “one of the leading anti-Russian hawks in Congress.” He was early supporter Ukraine’s weapons against Russia long before the Russian invasion in 2022, and led attempt to impeach former President Donald Trump for withholding that aid. Schiff attributes his suspicions about Russia to his early career experiences of breaking ties with Russia. Soviet spy operation as US Attorney.

Fort Meade, Maryland, where the NSA is based, was not nearly as active as Langley and McLean. The 20755 zip code donated $12,041 to ActBlue and Democratic Party committees, $5,012 to WinRed and Republican committees, $1,230 to Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign and $2,830 to Trump’s campaign.

Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Ala.) raised $2,000, becoming the only congressional candidate to raise more than a few hundred dollars from 20755 residents this cycle. Someone from Fort Meade, whose employer and position were not listed, donated $142 to the Libertarian National Committee.

Although current intelligence officers should not post their job title online – for reasons should be obvious— FBI agents are law enforcement officers who work honestly. Many of them listed their professions in Federal Election Commission records, so FBI employees can be seen making donations across the country. Despite a lot of noise in the media about Republicans turning against The Trump campaign received $15,410 from FBI officials, while the Harris campaign received $12,804, according to the FBI. On the other hand, FBI employees gave $18,104 to ActBlue and $17,730 to WinRed.

It’s an interesting illustration of how much—and how little—national security policy in America is changing. On the one hand, many moderate Democrats have newfound love military-industrial complex, driven by anti-Trump reaction and desire outwit competition. On the other hand, the most militant Republicans No stopped being militant, and although the “neocon” may have become dirty wordtheir ideas live on. Many people in and around national security agencies seem to approve.