Tipsheet

BREAKING: Old Man Still Muttering Incoherently About Koch Brothers


Same crank, same targets, different day. In Harry Reid's mind, everything is about the Koch brothers, including his own decision to block any Republican amendments to a bill that would extend unemployment insurance:



Sure, Harry. Whatever you say. Oh, what's that? A major Supreme Court decision just struck down aggregate limits on campaign contributions? Do your thing, gramps:


Responding to the decision, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) invoked his favorite boogeymen: the Koch brothers. “The Supreme Court today just accentuated what they did on Citizens United, which is a decision that is one of the worst decisions in the history of that court,” Reid said during a press conference on raising the minimum wage. “All it does is take away people’s rights because, as you know, the Koch brothers are trying to buy America.” ... “This in itself is a small step, but another step on the road to ruination,” said New York Sen. Chuck Schumer, the third-ranking Democrat. “It could lead to interpretations of the law that would result in the end of any fairness in the political system as we know it.”

At this point, Reid is basically rhetorically stalking the Kochs. His obsession is becoming so acute and creepy that the wealthy conservative brothers may consider seeking some form of restraining order. The way Reid tells it, the "un-American" Koch brothers are "trying to buy America," unlike heroes like George Soros and Tom Steyer, of course. The latter billionaire effectively rented the Senate floor for 12 hours a few weeks back, in exchange for $100 million in donations to Democrats and Democrat-leaning groups. But that's selfless, patriotic giving, you must understand. I posted this video yesterday, but it's worth re-sharing every time Reid starts spouting off about billionaires "buying America," or whatever:



A few parting thoughts on today's hot topic: Money in politics. The Supreme Court's decision in favor of free political speech will actually make the process more transparent. Our labyrinth of campaign finance laws have created an incentive for big donors to give untold amounts of cash to "outside groups," which they can do anonymously. Today's developments make it more likely that more election-related money will be donated "on the record," so to speak, which serves the public interest. The ruling will also apply to a very small group of donors. Democrats are working themselves into a righteous lather over the corrosive impact of money in American politics. Spare us. Democrats have gladly taken in billions from labor unions -- whom they never complain about, and often try to exempt from the restrictions they seek to impose on others. Barack Obama was the first major party presidential candidate who chose to forego public financing in order to haul in more campaign cash, even though he'd expressed strong support for public financing months earlier. His principled stand lasted until it was inconvenient to his own expedient interests. Then, after attacking Super PACs as a "threat to our democracy," Obama set one up for himself. His former campaign apparatus was then transformed into an "independent" group (that is so independent that it runs the @BarackObama twitter feed), which charges donors $500,000 in exchange for the privilege of meeting personally with the president at the White House on a quarterly basis. These facts will be largely absent from the Left's histrionics this week. Why is that? Also, how has Harry Reid gotten so rich during his career as a "public servant"?

UPDATE - Raise your hand if you're surprised by this:



Baseless defamation is his jam.