Breaking With Trump's GOP, Koch Brothers Praise Democrats On Immigration

[DonViejo]

Source: NPR



May 17, 20185:02 AM ET
Heard on Morning Edition

TIM MAK

The Koch brothers are going rogue.

For years the political network funded by billionaires Charles and David Koch funded politicians on the right, laying the foundation for the libertarian causes the two support. Their support has gone almost exclusively to Republican candidates, with rare exception. But in the era of Trump, what it means to be on the "right" is changing, and the Koch network's tactics are changing to reflect new realities.

For the first time, the LIBRE Initiative — the Hispanic outreach arm of the Koch network — is putting money behind efforts to praise Democrats on the federal level, and doing so with control of Congress on the line in the midterm elections.

"This stands out. People when they talk about the Koch network ... they point at areas like tax reform, where we've worked very closely with Republican members," said Wadi Gaitan, a spokesman for the LIBRE Initiative. "Here on this issue, we have Democrats where we want to make sure that their constituents are aware that they are working on a permanent solution for DREAMers and on border security. So it certainly is a unique effort."

Read more: https://www.npr.org/2018/05/17/611798012/breaking-with-trumps-gop-koch-brothers-praise-democrats-on-immigration

[njhoneybadger]

1. Nice diversion tactic

[Iliyah]

2. squirrel

[Eyeball_Kid]

3. The Kochs are NEVER to be trusted. For every penny they spend on outreach to

Democrats, millions go to strengthening fascism in the US.

[Cirque du So-What]

4. Purely out of self-interest

The Kochs and their minions are concerned first and foremost with ensuring adequate labor to keep their factories running. This cannot be achieved without immigration.

[irisblue]

5. It's a trap! (Someone please post the meme.)

Trusting a Koch anything is dangerous.

[BumRushDaShow]

8. ...

Akbar knew!

[irisblue]

13. BumRush. Thank You. 💜

[BumRushDaShow]

15. Hee hee

[MaryMagdaline]

6. Cheap labor

That is all

[mpcamb]

10. One of their oil riggers must have asked for a raise.

[MaryMagdaline]

12. So true!!

or benefits

[CanonRay]

7. These guys are still fascists

I don't give a shit if they support us on one thing. They are assholes, always have been, always will be.

[ancianita]

9. The Kochs work for their own global competitiveness -- playing "rogue," never being it.

Charles Koch and his two-generation grown ideological network have been way ahead of liberals in setting up their own "deep state." They use that term to label their political opponents in government.

But now that their Austrian school, racist, austerity economics comes back to bite them, they come out publicly to turn on the guys who get caught making their system look bad before their fellow globalists.

The GOP is what the Kochs helped make them. This immigrant thing won't stand if they don't like it.

Right now, according to Bloomberg, the Kochs are on to other important things like funding a door-to-door sell on the GOP's tax cut, just to GOTV.

[beachbum bob]

11. It's takes more than words, lets see Koch money going to democratic

Candidates, then it means something

[Dopers_Greed]

14. Not surprising

1. They want cheap labor
2. Having immigrants around fires up the bigoted Republican base, electing far-right candidates

[stuffmatters]

16. Poisoning & supressing votes of disadvantaged people of color continues to be Kochs' day's work.

Nothing's changed. ex Koch backed candidates all over the Country are loudly campaigning against sanctuary cities & DACA; haven't heard either of these Old Haters object to the immigration atrocity of separating women & children Their solution to Immigration/DACA is the good old "guest labor" plantation system... cheap, employer dependent labor without the right to vote, path to citizenship, social safety net etc.