KOCH BROTHERS: Buying up votes and influence.

So far this year, just 4 percent of the $12.4 million spent by political groups or party entities on congressional races came from groups based within the state where they’re doing their spending, the Center analysis shows.
Such spending by outside groups has become a pivotal element in elections thanks to the Supreme Court’s 2010 ruling in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, which allowed super PACs, unions and certain nonprofits to raise and spend unlimited amounts of money to advocate for or against political candidates.


The analysis found:

• From 2007 through 2011, Koch private foundations gave $41.2 million to 89 nonprofit organizations and an annual libertarian conference.
• Koch Industries and Charles and David Koch contributed $8.7 million to candidates and the Republican Party in the three election cycles between 2007 through 2012.
• In addition, Koch private foundations contributed $30.5 million to 221 U.S. colleges and universities and $46.3 million to the arts and other more traditionally charitable purposes during this period.

And while Koch Industries’ lobbyists were spending $53.9 million to further the giant corporation’s federal and state policy agenda, the nonprofits it funded were simultaneously “educating” the public and lawmakers about energy, the environment and other issues in public testimony on Capitol Hill.
The sheer magnitude of the amount of special interest money being spent in the nation is laid bare in each of these investigative reports. In other countries we might say this is evidence of corruption, but here it is business as usual.

http://www.publicintegrity.org/2013/07/18/12981/outside-money-dc-groups-koch-brothers-gushes-local-politics?utm_source=email&utm_campaign=watchdog&utm_medium=publici-email