Following a political agenda formulated during the Reagan Administration, billionaire brothers David and Charles Koch along with like-minded oligarchs have successfully created and funded the USA’s Tea Party political movement. Masquerading as a grass roots crusade, the magnates have effectively conned many idealist Americans. Only recently have progressives begun to unravel the Kochtopus and reveal the clandestine conspiracy of the mega rich.
Free Market Capitalism (FMC)
Running as vice president on the Libertarian Ticket in 1980, the co-owner of America’s second largest privately held corporation (Koch Industries) and America’s fourth richest tycoon, David Koch, along with his industrialist brother Charles, formed and funded organizations that promote their personal ideas of free market capitalism.
These are philosophies that are extremely radical and distort the concept of market economics. They interpreted FMC to mean, the absolute personal power, masked with a corporate veil, which is devoid of all external intervention. Reporter Jane Mayer wrote, “When David Koch ran…his campaign called for the abolition [of]…any government enterprise that would either inhibit his business profits or increase his taxes.”
Propaganda Tools
Following defeat in 1980, the Kochs changed tactics and enticed other likeminded American oligarchs to join forces. The billionaires exploited their economic superiority by staffing organizations with hired guns that disseminated their propaganda. Utilizing euphemisms to misinform and nationalism to prevent dissent, their establishments became sufficiently powerful to eject any opponent contradicting their program. “The Kochs are on a whole different level….They have a pattern of law breaking, political manipulation, and obfuscation….I’ve never seen anything like it,” Mayer insisted.
- CSE – Citizens for a Sound Economy was the first organization formed by Koch in 1984. Its stated goal was to “fight for less government, lower taxes, and less regulation.” [Oldham]
- AFP - Americans for Prosperity arose from the restructuring of CSE in 2004 and retained David Koch as Chairman.
- FW – FreedomWorks resulted from merging the remaining portions of CSE with Empower America in 2004. This tax free 501(c)3 organization has billionaire Steve Forbes on its board.
- Empower America – was founded by fundamentalist Bill Bennett who championed a conservative domestic agenda while promoting hawkish foreign policy.
- Hired Guns – Professor Fred Singer, Congressman Dick Armey, Christian Coalition Leader Ralph Reed, Americans for Tax Reform’s Grover Norquist, disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff and countless others.
The Koch brothers joined supportive billionaires; the Coors brothers (Beer), the Walton Family (WalMart), the Olin Family (Winchester ammunition), Richard Mellon Scaife (banking/publishing), Rupert Murdoch (publishing) and the corporate duo of Phillip Morris (tobacco) and ExxonMobil (oil) to create 87 organizations that became known as the Kochtopus. An entity that will develop, espouse and promote the free market agenda for the benefit of this group of oligarchs.
The Tea Party
Commentator, Rick Santelli first mentioned the tea party revolt during an on-air rant in 2009. “We’re thinking of having a Chicago Tea Party in July,” Santelli screeched from the floor of the Chicago Board of Trade. It would seem disgruntled Americans started a grass roots organization.
AstroTurf
According to investigative journalist Taki Oldham, “The aim was to make it appear that grass roots citizens were advocating these radical ideas and not the wealthy and powerful elite. In truth…the backing came from not only billionaire ideologues [but]…from companies across a range of industries.”
The corporate propaganda mission was to enflame individuals into attacking administrations. Government became the euphemism for commercial regulations and freedom meant untethered capitalism; however, it was imperative the people remain unsuspecting. “Propaganda is all the more credible for not seeming to be propaganda….It has to seem to come from…the people themselves,” argues Professor of media studies Mark Crispin Miller of New York University. “We’re talking about deceptive ways of getting around peoples’ defenses…. These citizens groups are bogus,” Dr. Miller tells Oldham.
- CSE’s classic attack can be seen in their denunciation of the FDA as big government intrusion. What was missing from CSE’s condemnation was information that the tobacco industry funded the campaign out of a desire to remove FDA smoking regulations.
- The insurance and drug industries used fantasy attacks on the American lifestyle in another citizenry misinformation blitz. Healthcare reform became synonymous with soviet style socialist meddling into “individual freedom and liberties.” [AP] Here too the people became the unwitting minions of the elite.
The power of organized misinformation remains a tool for American billionaires. Last summer the Kochs were illuminated. Tax records indicate they spent a quarter of a billion dollars in controlling the American people ($196 million for Koch foundations, $50 million in lobbying and $4.8 million in PAC contributions); excluding anonymous private donations. With regard to hidden donations, Frank Rich put it best: “The Kochs surely match the in-kind donations the Tea Party receives…from Murdoch’s Fox News….”
Sources
- Associated Press. April 22, 2011. “House Democrat files suit forcing donor disclosure.” Bloomberg Business Week, 24 April 2011.
- Mayer, Jane. August 30, 2010. “Covert Operations.” The New Yorker Magazine. 25 April 2011.
- Oldham, Takeshi (Taki). February 2011. Documentary: The Billionaires’ Tea Party. Larrikin Films. 24 April 2011.
- Rich, Frank. 28 August 2010. “The Billionaires Bankrolling the Tea Party.” The New York Times. 24 April 2011.
- Santelli, Rick. 19 February 2009. “Squawk Box.” CNBC TV.
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