A well-funded movement of centrist zealots is being accused of plotting to elect Trump. That might be giving them too much credit.
From the July 4, 2023 takedown:
With a No Labels candidacy unlikely to win electoral votes, then, or even to meaningfully affect public discussion of the organization’s stated values, speculation has naturally arisen about what—or whose—purpose such a campaign would really serve. Because the group is a nonprofit that doesn’t have to identify its donors, this speculation can have a sinister edge. Cui bono from all this “dark money”?
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The Democrats favored by No Labels donors have a common history of resisting proposals for social spending and efforts to raise taxes or regulate the financial industry....
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So what’s the deal with No Labels? Here’s a theory: Its leaders and guiding spirits—the Jacobsons, Penns, and Liebermans—are locked in a mutually delusional feedback loop with their donors in which everyone convinces themselves that a random politician whose main attribute is being objectionable to both parties could become president. They have a faith-like conviction that both sides must always be doing something wrong, a hunger for relevance, and enough confidence to keep going when everyone tells them they’re making a mistake. That (and $70 million) is more than enough to spoil an election with or without having a clear goal in mind. “What is No Labels’ plan for 2024?” might be the wrong question; a better one might be “Does No Labels ever have a plan at all?”