PrairiePundit

NY Times: How David Koch and His Brother Shaped American Politics The billionaire, who died Friday, understood the power of changing ‘hearts and minds.’ He spent almost unlimited money on behalf of limited government. He and a group he supported was responsible for Republicans taking over state legislatures around the country and stopping the control freak Democrats after Obama pushed liberalism to a point of rebellion against Democrats.  Modern Democrats have gotten even wackier.  One of the strange things about the surviving Democrats is that they think the President who has created a growing economy and millions of new jobs is crazy.  Koch's freedom agenda is still relevant.

Kyle Smith: The NY Times’ absurd Koch brothers conspiracy This a funny piece that exposes the Koch derangement syndrome at the NY Times .

NY Times: Kochs Court Blacks, Calling Fossil Fuels a Racial Issue Anticipating a fossil fuel resurgence, the ultraconservative brothers, who run an oil and petroleum conglomerate, are busily expanding their outreach. It is misleading to describe the Kochs as 'ultraconservative."  Their views on criminal justice reform are not considered conservative at all and their views on economics are aimed at creating prosperity for all. It is also becoming clear that the Big Green movement hurts the poor more than the rich.  By pushing for inefficient energy, the environmentalists will do greater harm to minorities than other groups.  Pointing that out is the right thing to do.

NY Times: With Senate Control at Stake, Koch Groups Start Endorsing by Name Grass-roots appeals on behalf of specific Republican candidates are a marked shift for the Koch political network and a major test of its strength. The Koch Groups are the best chance of keeping the Senate in Republican hands, which will be crucial to stopping Hillary Clinton's liberal agenda should she be elected.  The task is made more difficult by the current leaderships funding of projects despised by the GOP base, like Obamacare and Obama's amnesty attempts.

NY Times: Koch Brothers Prepare for a Long War Over G.O.P. Values Donald J. Trump’s views are a sharp rebuke to the free-market principles long championed by the billionaire brothers Charles G. and David H. Koch. But whatever the setbacks, the brothers are working to ensure that their Grassroots Leadership Academy reshapes the future of the Republican Party. On issues of trade, Trump is just wrong.  He is wrong about NAFTA which has been a net positive for states like Texas and has actually created thousands of jobs.  The Trump economic plan will lower the standard of living for most Americans and especially the poor who will have to pay higher prices for goods because of his tariff agenda.  I side with the Kochs on this one. What Trump is doing is pandering to the rust belt blue states with their forced union policies that have been the real cause of their low growth.

NY Times: Harry Reid and Koch Brothers Wage Proxy War for a Nevada Senate Seat The battle to choose Mr. Reid’s successor is pitting him against Charles G. and David H. Koch, who are trying to flip a Democratic seat and help Republicans seal control of the Senate. Reid is a guy with few inhibitions when it comes to politics.  He will say and do almost anything to win regardless of the facts.  He has insulted the Koch brothers on the senate floor for exercising their right to engage in the political process.   The country and the world will be a better place if they win this one.

Washington Post: Koch network seeks to defuse donor frustration over Trump rebuff Charles Koch’s refusal to harness his singular operation in support of the Republican presidential nominee has put him at odds with some of his wealthiest peers — and forced the network to defend its relevance at a time of its greatest reach. I see the Kochs as people who have certain principals they choose to support and Trump does not appear to match those objectives.  I have the same response to the Trump candidacy.   The Kochs should be applauded for the work they are doing to save a Republican majority in Congress.  That looks like the best way to thwart the evils of liberalism at this time.

Washington Post: Koch political network plans to invoke Hillary Clinton in Senate ads “We are going to tie the Democrat candidates to Hillary Clinton and the failed policies that she supports,” the chairman of the network’s funding arm said. This is a smart move that avoids having to defend Trump.  Hillary Clinton is still a divisive figure and voters will want to contain her liberal agenda if she wins.

CNN: ... "We would need to see two things and they're straightforward things," Tim Phillips, president of Americans for Prosperity, told David Axelrod on "The Axe Files," a podcast produced by CNN and the University of Chicago Institute of Politics. "One is genuinely movement towards a more prosperity-focused free market vision on entitlement reform, government spending, government cronyism,...free trade. And two, a tone that is more uplifting. This isn't electoral advice, but we just tend to look at getting involved where there is more of an uplifting tone." ... It sounds like it would take a personality transplant for Trump to earn that help.  Phillips is a smart guy.  Trump would be wise to consider what he is looking for.

ABC News: Political groups backed by billionaires Charles and David Koch are spending $7.7 million on television and online advertising in the Ohio Senate race — part of a broader plan to focus on the Republican-led Senate instead of the presidential race. The latest wave of ads in the matchup between incumbent Republican Sen. Rob Portman and Democratic former Gov. Ted Strickland spotlights taxes and fees Strickland raised while in office. The ads are paid for by Freedom Partners Action Fund. Other Koch groups, including Americans for Prosperity, have been knocking on doors and making phone calls to voters to boost Portman support. During an Ohio "day of action" last month, the groups made 625,000 calls and stopped at almost 17,000 homes. Beyond that race, Koch groups have advertised in Senate contests in Nevada, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania and made a small buy in New Hampshire before the Republican Sen. Kelly Ayotte said she did not want money from outside groups invo...

NY Times: Libre, Backed by Koch Brothers, Aims to Raise G.O.P. Standing With Hispanics Tapping some Democratic strategies, the Libre Initiative seeks to win over Hispanics by promoting economic freedom and smaller-government principles. I know many Hispanic who own businesses  who share the frustration of others in dealing with Democrat control freak government that stifles productivity and creativity.  There are also others trying to get into the job market that find it hard to get a start because of minimum wage laws.  These people are already citizens and illegal immigration effects their jobs prospects too as well as pushing down their wages.

Washington Post: Billionaire Koch brothers make push to court Latinos, alarming many Democrats The brothers, supporters of Republicans who oppose citizenship for illegal immigrants, are now funding services for them. Democrats are not particular alarmed about eh utter failure of the Obama administration's foreign policy from Russia to the Middle East and Africa, but the thought that Hispanics might support Republicans is really scary.

The Hill: Conservative donors Charles and David Koch are not ruling out backing a candidate in the Republican presidential primary process — and have honed in on five contenders they believe could get elected.   Charles Koch told USA Today on Tuesday they believe former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, Sen. Marco Rubio (Fla.), Sen. Rand Paul (Ky.) and Sen. Ted Cruz (Texas) all have "a good chance of getting elected." "Those are the ones we have talked to the most and who seem to be the possible leaders," he told the newspaper. "What we've told them all is that right now, we're not supporting anyone," he said. "We're telling them that if they want our support, one way to get it is articulating a good message to help Americans get a better understanding and a better appreciation of how certain policies … will benefit them and will benefit all America." ... An earlier NY Times story said they were likely to ba...

NY Times: Koch Brothers Signal Support for Walker in 2016 Race Charles G. and David H. Koch, the influential and big-spending conservative donors, have a favorite in the race for the Republican nomination: Gov. Scott Walker of Wisconsin. This will probably make it easier for him to stay in the race and compete with other candidates who have strong financial backing like Jeb Bush and recent Ted Cruz.  He still has to get the votes which gives the other candidates a chance.

Buzzfeed: Last August, Pastor Marcus Burgos brought a group to his church, which is located in a rough part of San Antonio. Together, Burgos and a handful of people from the group, called the LIBRE Initiative, distributed boxes of food to parishioners in need, the majority of whom were Hispanic. In Florida, the organization helps Latinos with tax-preparation services. In Nevada, the group is helping undocumented immigrants get their driver’s authorization cards. The LIBRE Initiative, in short, is helping Latinos with the things regular people need help with. And it’s alarming Democrats. LIBRE is a group backed by billionaires Charles and David Koch. They’ve been providing services and building meaningful relationships with Hispanics since 2011 in states like Nevada, Florida, Colorado, Texas, and Arizona — and they’re doing this all while espousing conservative principles to a key demographic of voters in person, in print, and online. Democrats from these key states are upset about it...

Bloomberg/Fuel Fix: Koch brothers worth $100 billion lead oil moguls on rise Harold Hamm who has been active in the North Dakota sale play also saw his fortune enhanced.   The price recovery maybe in time to save the jobs of workers on the production side.

NY Times: Koch Brothers’ Budget of $889 Million for 2016 Is on Par With Both Parties’ Spending Bo Rader/The Wichita Eagle, via Associated Press Charles Koch in 2012. The Kochs and their advisers have built a robust array of political organizations. The goal, announced at the billionaire brothers’ annual winter retreat, is an unparalleled effort by outside groups to shape a presidential election. If you think the Obama administration has been a liberal disaster and don't want to see it repeated hunder Hillary Clinton then you will probably be glad to see that there are people who want to stop it from happening again.  This will help to counter the leftist influence of the Soros, Steyer  wing of the Democrat party.

Washington Post: Democratic strategists debate future anti-Koch ads After midterm losses, some want to expand attacks against the Koch brothers. This is a losing strategy for Democrats but they can't seem to help themselves.  The Koch brothers helped to sponsor issue oriented ads critical of Democratic policies such as Obamacare.  Rather than defend those policies, the Democrats responded by saying insulting things about the Koch brothers.  Attacking the messenger rather than the message does not work and makes the Democrats look like they are trying to avoid the issue.  It takes more than just telling critics to shut up to win an argument.  But from the IRS abuse to the attacks on the Kochs the Democrat focus seems to be on suppressing dissent rather than engaging in debate.

Douglas MacKinnon: Don’t take your cues from this wealthy spin doctor This is a good response to Steyer's misleading campaign for Big Green.

Washington Free Beacon: The Obama administration must acknowledge the existence of an independent investigation into former White House senior economics adviser Austan Goolsbee’s alleged unauthorized access to the Koch brother’s tax returns, a court ruled Tuesday. A federal judge ruled the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) must disclose to watchdog group Cause of Action whether records of an investigation exist. Cause of Action filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit after TIGTA refused to confirm or deny the existence of the investigation in what is commonly known as a “Glomar response.” “The court has ruled that the federal government cannot hide behind confidentiality laws to prevent Americans from knowing if our President has gained unauthorized access to their tax information,” Cause of Action executive director Dan Epstein said in a statement Tuesday. “This is a decisive win for all Americans and for government transparency and accountability...