Friday, July 15, 2011

HOT: Koch Brothers Ignore Ron Paul Give Cash to Bachmann

Reports Mother Jones:
The billionaire Koch brothers, Charles and David, spread their money far and wide. They fund free-market think tanks, right-leaning academic organizations, and conservative political advocacy groups, such as the Americans for Prosperity Foundation, which helped cultivate the tea party. The political action committee for the Kochs' massive conglomerate, Koch Industries, has also given generously to big-name conservative politicians throughout the country at both the federal and state level. But when it comes to the 2012 presidential race, the Kochs have been more selective with their giving, with only one presidential candidate so far benefitting from their largesse: Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.).

In late May, KochPAC, as Koch Industries' PAC is known, donated $10,000 in one day to Bachmann-linked committees—$5,000 to her 2012 congressional re-election committee and $5,000 to her political action committee, MICHELE PAC, according to the most recent records available. (That's short for Many Individual Conservatives Helping Elect Leaders Everywhere PAC.) The two checks weren't KochPAC's first contributions to Bachmann. According to federal campaign records, the committee has given $25,000 to the Minnesota congresswoman since 2006, excluding the May donation.

It's unclear whether KochPAC has also donated to Bachmann's presidential committee, which was created in June after she officially unveiled her candidacy. Her campaign has yet to report contributions and expenditures to the Federal Election Commission. But it is worth noting that Bachmann can, under FEC rules, transfer her congressional campaign funds into her presidential war chest, since she suspended her congressional fundraising operation last month. When Bachmann does reveal her latest fundraising haul, a large chunk of it is expected to come from her congressional campaign.

According to campaign records, Bachmann is the only Republican in the presidential race who has received any money from KochPAC in 2010 and 2011. In 2010, the committee did give $50,000 to Texans for Rick Perry, a PAC that supports Texas Republican Governor Rick Perry, who is flirting with the idea of a presidential run but has yet to decide. Indeed, the only other Republican candidate with a history of KochPAC support is hard-line former US senator Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania. Between 1999 and 2005, federal records show, Santorum election committees received $16,000 from the committee.
UPDATE: A friend reminds me that they also gave money to the candidate who ran against Rand Paul.

19 comments:

  1. The Kochs have bad history with Ron Paul (and Lew Rockwell). Koch Bros are only interested in libertarians / conservatives that are willing to support Koch interests while paying lip service to "small government" and "TEA Party".

    In other words, they're crony capitalists, which is to say NON-libertarian, NON-capitalists.

    ~Texas Chris

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  2. Gee, what a shock.

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  3. Why does everyone keep thinking of Bachmann as the Tea Party candidate? Have you people lost your minds? Do you not remember last election when the Tea Party was spawned by "Ron Pauls'" campaign? That is also why he wins almost every Tea Party poll over her. No one has a more consistently conservative stance. I am not wasting my vote on Bachmann because I don't think she'll carry through on anything. She is all talk just like the others. Are you people afraid of real change? Our country is in such dire straights to warrant the change that only Ron Paul will bring. Any other candidate will only change this or that...it still erodes our economy. We can not afford any more erosion people. Please consider the issues honestly. VOTE RON PAUL

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  4. @ Shadow19D

    I hate to break it to you, but the Tea Party is not libertarian. Ask how many people in the Tea Party would like to scale down defense spending or an end to the war on drugs. People like Michelle Bachmann and Sarah Palin are embraced by many in the Tea Party. Forget the Tea Party, it was co-opted the moment is started.

    P.S. People here are NOT supporting Michelle Bachmann; they are simply exposing the Koch brothers as frauds who support the oligarchy, of which Bachmann is a part.

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  5. Maybe because Ron Paul has no chance of winning, plus every organization that strongly supports Paul likes to bash the Koch brothers for not passing their little Libertarian purity tests.

    It's like Ron Paul's quote about Gary Johnson..."he's a different kind of libertarian..."

    Oh really? Maybe Gary Johnson's not as racist/anti-immigrant/anti-abortion as Ron Paul likes to see in "his kind of libertarian".

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  6. Let's see, the Koch brothers support full drug legalization, while Ron Paul wants drug users thrown into state prisons instead of federal prisons.

    So who's the fake libertarian?

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    1. FYI......Ron Paul supports legalizing Marijuana for recreational use. He feels the federal government should step out on what voters in individual states choose to do. Ron Paul doesn't want to throw people in to prisons. If I am incorrect about this and apologize for my comment, but I have been following Ron Paul and I feel your comment is false. PEACE

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    2. One thing I hate and can't respect from anyone, even fellow Libertarians, is putting words in your adversary's mouth to make your argument because your advisory won't actually give you those word. That makes your argument a lie and if you must lie to make your case you lose. Ron Paul has spoken out repeatedly for years against all victimless crimes including all drug laws whether State or Federal. Oh never mind facts, who needs them. When all else fails just call him a racist. That always works and you win your argument! This shit is getting so old!

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  7. Bachmann's a fascist like Congressman Paul Ryan - both voted to extend the Patriot Act early this year. As for the Koch Brothers' financing think tanks, I still cannot understand how CATO has remained consistent on virtually all minarchist/libertarian issues.

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  8. Bachmann voted for the bailouts, voted to extend the PATRIOT Act. She doesn't support spending cuts for the "defense" budget. She is a theocrat, and it's a shame that the tea party folks don't see this.

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  9. @ Anonymous at 2:31PM

    Come on, now... if you're going to disagree, at least do so in a noninflammatory manner with a sound argument.

    Paul's position for federal decriminalization (as opposed to outright federal legalization) is consistent with libertarian principles, at least within the context that we are (or at least we're supposed to be) in a federalist system with limited federal gov't powers over the states.

    While I personally believe that a situation where drugs are legal in all states would be ideal, the means of achieving such an outcome through the federal gov't (assuming it was actually possible to get the necessary votes) would only serve to reinforce, by way of precedent, the use of federal power in the creation and enforcement of overreaching policy - The same process used to justify the enactment of more obviously violative mandates on the states (a la Obamacare); thus, it encourages the erosion of the state governements' powers in this sense.

    Also, your statement that Paul "wants drug users thrown into state prisons" seems to be an intentional mischaracterization. He has stated that he would support drug legalization if he were holding a position in a state legislature. However, that of course is not the case. Therefore, he supports a policy in congruence with the philosophy of protecting states' rights; one that would eliminate the current federal intrusion on states, without replacing that with another form of intrusion (i.e. forced legalization). To do otherwise would be inconsistent with this philosophy...

    ...If you want to present a different way of interpreting this philosophy (or if you could argue for a better philosophy that could be applied with as much consistency) then I'm willing to listen.

    However, in calling Paul a "fake libertarian" in while giving preference for the Koch's - who have less consistency with their political stances than infants have with potty training aptitude - you demonstrate your claims to be based on a lack of understanding of, and poor judgement on, this topic. Either that or you're trolling.

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  10. Anonymous at 2:28 and 3:01:

    You are completely out of your minds and calumniating Ron Paul.

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  11. "However, in calling Paul a "fake libertarian" in while giving preference for the Koch's - who have less consistency with their political stances than infants have with potty training aptitude - you demonstrate your claims to be based on a lack of understanding of, and poor judgement on, this topic. Either that or you're trolling."

    Let's just say I'm being deliberately provocative, as well I should be, given that any ostensibly libertarian blog that's as zeroed in on the Koch brothers as Wenzel and Lew Rockwell are is decidedly more interested in kissing up to progressives than they are in advancing the cause of human liberty.

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  12. Wenzel and Lew Rockwell kiss up to progressives?

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  13. Where were you guys all calling yourselves "libertarians" now, from 2000 to 2008? MOST of the new "tea partiers" are just theocrats and cultural conservatives jumping on a bandwagon they'll jump right off of once they think they're back on top. You guys supported and went along with all the fascist laws, the wars of empire, and the horrors and shame that the people you now call "neocons" with a sneer did to us -- you were all neocons for the last decade! That's exactly why Bachman gets called "tea party" and no one says a damn thing, because they wouldn't know a fascist if one tossed them in a mass grave. You think Obama's the problem, but he's toothless. He's just riding out Bush's legacy. These know nothing "teo-cons" and fair-weather friends are the real problem.

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  14. Anon834pm-

    I'll admit, I went to a GWBush rally in late 1999, but compared to Gore he seemed like a better choice. Post 9/11 I knew he was just another tool and fought (and lost friends over) everything he did after I realized his true nature. Thank God for Lew Rockwell or I might have been just another cog in his neocon machine.

    Now I know that any career pol who isn't Ron Paul (who has 30 years of consistent opposition to expansion of wars, debt, welfare, etc.) is just another piece of shit that will support the banksters and oligarchs that rule our country.

    99% of the readers of EPJ are opposed to ANY expansion of government power, domestic or foreign. Bachmann is a Cv^t, Cain is an @$$, Romeny is a moron...

    You must be new here.

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  15. The Koch Bros. did not donate to Rand's opponent. They actually donated $17k to Rand in 2010.

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  16. The Kock's are still inconsistent: NOT Libertarian. Libertarians follow ONE path, NOT the path they feel like following!

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