“Unparalleled”, “historic”, “staggering” were the words used by the press to describe the plan of the Koch brothers political network to spend $889 million to ensure a conservative results in the 2016 elections. @ http://tinyurl.com/k8dmjxk
These same words used to characterize unprecedented political influence might also apply to the unprecedented number of Americans who have been economically and politically marginalized: 46.5 million on SNAP food stamps, 45 million below the poverty line for the third year in a row, child poverty rates near 20%. Unparalleled, historic, staggering.
Most of the reporting has analyzed the projected gap between liberal and conservative spending, and between private spending and that of the major parties themselves. But it is also worth speculating on the amount of good that could be done if such financial support were targeted to the urgent human need of many in America today
Once active in presidential politics, but now working in the nonprofit sector to end hunger, I’m dismayed by the corrosive impact of such special interest spending (legal though it may be under current Supreme Court rulings.) But at least there’s some consolation in feeding America’s hungry children rather than feeding campaign consultants which is probably the first and perhaps most immediate byproduct of the Koch Bros lavish spending.
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