Bloomberg TV Special: Koch Brothers 'Laid The Groundwork' For Tea Party Rise
Written by Joe Strupp
Published
Among the insights found in tonight's Bloomberg Television presentation of “Game Changers,” which profiles the billionaire Koch Brothers, is Bloomberg Washington, D.C. Executive Editor Al Hunt's views that Charles and David Koch are very influential, not forthcoming, and “more active than ever.” According to Hunt, the Kochs' “philosophical, personal and political agenda” often overlaps with the “corporate agenda” of their “far-flung energy empire.”
A sneak preview of highlights from the Bloomberg program, set for 9 p.m. EDT, includes Hunt stating:
“The left will argue that anything bad that happens you can attribute to the Koch Brothers and sometimes from the left's perspective, they may be right. They are very influential.”
“We've never had anyone who's given to political campaigns and causes the way they have that are as wealthy as the Koch brothers are. They're worth by some estimates 30 billion plus. That puts them behind only Warren Buffet and Bill Gates in America. People like George Soros look like a piker compared to them.”
“It's sometimes hard to distinguish between what their philosophical, personal and political agenda is and what their corporate agenda is. They often times overlap. They have spent a lot of money to promote anti-government, free enterprise, anti-regulation, lower taxes. That all benefits both their far-flung energy empire and themselves personally.”
“The Koch brothers aren't very forthcoming. They don't do media interviews. They aren't available to call up on the phone and ask about charges, at least Charles Koch tends to be very, very private.”
“Citizens United has had a huge impact, it's opened the floodgates.... The anecdotal evidence is that the Koch's are more active than ever post Citizens United because they can come in totally under the radar screen.”
Bloomberg promotes the program by describing the Koch Brothers this way:
Using their immense wealth to shake up the game of politics, they've spent millions to found and fund think tanks and PACs. Along the way, they've laid the groundwork for the rise of the Tea Party, ensuring that American politics will never be the same.