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posted by LaminatorX on Wednesday January 28 2015, @05:21AM   Printer-friendly
from the mo-money-mo-problems dept.

Nicholas Confessore reports at the New York Times that the Koch Brothers and their political network plan to spend close to $900 million in the 2016 election, an unparalleled effort by coordinated outside groups to shape a presidential election that is already on track to be the most expensive in history. The group’s budget reflects the rising ambition and expanded reach of the Koch operation, which has sought to distinguish itself from other outside groups by emphasizing the role of donors over consultants and political operatives. Hundreds of conservative donors recruited by the Kochs gathered over the weekend for three days of issue seminars, strategy sessions, and mingling with rising elected officials. These donors represent the largest concentration of political money outside the party establishment, one that has achieved enormous power in Republican circles in recent years. “It’s no wonder the candidates show up when the Koch brothers call,” says David Axelrod, a former senior adviser to Mr. Obama. “That’s exponentially more money than any party organization will spend. In many ways, they have superseded the party.”

Espousing a political worldview that protects free speech and individual and property rights with equal protection for everyone under the law Koch says: “It is up to us. Making this vision a reality will require more than a financial commitment. It requires making it a central part of our lives.” Told of the $889 million goal, Mark McKinnon, a veteran GOP operative who has worked to rally Republican support to reduce the role of money in politics, quipped: “For that kind of money, you could buy yourself a president. Oh, right. That’s the point.”

 
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  • (Score: 2) by jmorris on Wednesday January 28 2015, @05:58PM

    by jmorris (4844) on Wednesday January 28 2015, @05:58PM (#138965)

    Only if you make one key assumption, that the voting public is a fixed and known quantity.

    You are correct that simply spending Sagan's on a candidate or single issue quickly hits limits. But a dedicated, longterm effort to change the voters does work. The Enemy has demonstrated this through several paths.

    Voters can remove elected officials but the elected officials realized they can import a new electorate. That was one of the stated goals of the throwing open of the border back in the post WWII era. If you haven't been in Plato's Cave the last decade you have seen a Democratic operative or media host (BIRM) cackle with glee over the 'demographic disaster' the Republicans find themselves in and RINOs running in terror trying to outpander for the Hispanic (read Mexican) vote. This was not a happy accident.

    If you seize the education system you can pretty much rewrite the rules of what is politically possible in a generation. See current reality.

    If you control the mass media (news and entertainment) you can set the very language of debate, what topics are even 'legitimate' and shape public opinion. See current reality.

    If the Koch Brothers were smart they would be embarking on a long term project to change the system where the actual levers of power reside.

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