Look no further than Keith Lavoie, a partner at Khosla Ventures, to understand the position of unwavering Trump supporters in the wake of last weekend’s fatal shooting of an American by a federal Border Patrol agent in Minneapolis that shocked the nation.
Mr. Lavoie’s public support for the Border Patrol’s actions in the murder of Alex Preti, made through his posts on X, was such that both Khosla Ventures partner Ethan Choi and company founder Vinod Khosla publicly denied it.
Lavoie blamed Preti and wrote that the protesters were committing a “serious crime.” “No law enforcement agency shoots and kills innocent people. Illegal aliens commit violent crimes every day,” one of Lavoie’s posts read. Another said: “He clearly tried to draw his weapon. Damn it.” In another post discussing people’s ability to exercise their First, Second, and Fourth Amendment rights, the VC added, “That’s true, but interference with law enforcement activities is not protected by any of these amendments.”
Among other comments, Lavoie went on to say that he did not believe that the Minneapolis Police Department would be a reliable source of information in an investigation, saying, “I don’t think we should ask Minnesota law enforcement. But I would be very open to reading input from other metropolitan jurisdictions.” He instead blamed the city police for the situation. “Because the Minnesota State Police’s refusal to cooperate is what has led to this dangerous situation (for everyone).”
and so on.
X reacted as expected. While other Trump supporters cheered Lavoie on, those who condemned ICE’s actions argued and criticized investors.
The situation got so bad that when someone suggested that the founders remove Khosla Ventures from the cap table completely, Khosla partner Choi became sour and distanced himself.
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“I want to make it clear that Keith doesn’t represent everyone’s opinion here at @khoslaventures. At least not my opinion. What happened in Minnesota is clearly wrong. I don’t know how we can actually see it differently. It’s sad to see a life taken needlessly,” Choi wrote.
Later, the company’s founder, Khosla himself, sided with Choi. “I agree with @EthanChoi7. Macho ICE vigilantes are running amok.” [sic] Empowered by an unconscious regime,” he said in a post about X.
Under normal circumstances, opposing political viewpoints can be a strength for VC firms. Regardless of what anyone thinks of Mr. Lavoie’s politics, he’s also a highly successful investor, backing companies like DoorDash, Affirm, Fair, and Stripe, and co-founding startups like Opendoor.
However, it can sometimes have internally destructive effects.
Sequoia has been embroiled in controversy over comments made by partner Sean Maguire attacking New York City mayoral candidate Zoran Mamdani. Mr. Maguire (whose comments on ICE over the weekend echoed Mr. Lavoie) remains an investor in Sequoia. However, Roelof Botha, the leader at the time of the Mamdani controversy, resigned from the senior management board in November. Botha was replaced by Alfred Lin and Pat Grady (both of whom were not weighed in over the weekend).
In this case, the rift between Khosla’s partners was exposed publicly. Note, however, that Khosla did not directly criticize Lavoie. (The company did not respond to requests for comment.)
When Khosla Ventures rehired Mr. Lavoie in 2024, it knew it was bringing into its ranks an outspoken, self-proclaimed “contrarian” who likes to criticize the “woke” and praise President Trump. For his part, Lavoie knew he would be working for someone who is a vocal critic of Trump (Vinod Khosla has been vocal about his views on Trump for years).
Will the crash continue? Probably, but only if the founders actually start taking Khosla Ventures off the cap table.
