Progressive Groups Say Koch Brothers are Attacking Rhode Island
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Activists, union leaders and concerned citizens took to Kennedy Plaza Monday to warn that a national agenda put forth by billionaires Charles and David Koch will set the country – and Rhode Island – back if voters don’t rise to the challenge this November.
At a rally attended by roughly 30 Rhode Islanders, a group known as Patriot Majority explained what it calls the Koch brothers’ “greed agenda,” which includes advocating for tax breaks for the extraordinarily wealthy while cutting social programs.
The goal was to exploit to the Koch brothers and other special interest groups who have suggested they may spend nearly a half billion dollars this election season in an effort to elect conservative candidates to office. While the groups haven’t spent money in Rhode Island, Ocean State Action executive director Kate Brock said their agenda has gotten through to many members of the General Assembly, most notably through the implementation of the state’s voter id law.
Brock implored voters to take action against the special interests.
“If the Koch brothers and their special interest friends are successful, pay equity for women would end, workers would go without a minimum wage or even basic protections and Medicare and Social would be a thing of the past,” she said.
The Koch brothers are among the largest funders of Americans for Prosperity, the nonprofit group that has spent millions of dollars influencing the political spectrum in recent years. Critics say the group supported a House budget that would turn Medicare into a voucher system and raise the eligibility age.
According to Patriot Majority, which is touring the country to exploit the Koch brothers’ efforts, the “greed agenda” includes giving tax breaks to the extremely wealthy; privatizing Social Security and Medicare; supporting voter id laws; cutting funding for public schools; rolling back regulations on big banks; lowering wages for middle class families; eliminating workers’ rights’ blocking pay equity for women; supporting the rich oil companies; privatizing firefighting and other public services; cutting funding to veterans; and protecting special interest polluters.
Patriot Majority has been traveling throughout the country since August in what it calls an attempt to educate voters about right wing groups supported by wealthy backers like the Koch brothers. National Education Association official Patrick Crowley called the Koch brothers a “unique threat to Rhode Island and to America.”
“Not only have they promised to contribute hundreds of millions of dollars to influence this election, but those dollars are in service of an agenda characterized by greed and a stunning disregard for the well-being of our nation,” he said.
Dan McGowan can be reached at dmcgowan@golocalprov.com. Follow him on Twitter: @danmcgowan.
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Comments:
Jeffrey deckman
7:59am on Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Thank you for this warning. My only regret is that I couldn't attend that rally! We all most do all we can to make sure the unions keep control of our state. They have done such a great job over the past 70 years.
Do you make the Kool Aide yourself or do the unions keep you supplied for free?
Roger Williams
8:45am on Tuesday, September 25, 2012
As we all well know, people who spend money promote ideas we disagree with are "brainwashing" while the people who spend money promoting ideas we agree with are "raising awareness". It's the only explanation available for why progressives claim that the Koch bros. money "corrupts" while George Soros and/or union money does not, and vice versa.
Confirmation bias, anyone?
Buddy Carcieri
9:10am on Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Kate Brock is the princess of poverty exploitation. She does absolutely nothing to help "working families." People like her and Pat Crowley and David Segal and Libby Kimzey are all about their names and their career advancement. Crowley is an intimidating crook, Kimzey is the daughter of a murderer, Segal is a wealthy, pompous, socially-inept cretin, and Brock is a wanna-be hippie. They all think they're saving the world, when in fact, they're just Kochs in liberal clothing. Their extremism is as detrimental as the Koch brand - they just want power and control.
Gary Arnold
9:47am on Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Conservative is bad, voter ID is bad, tax breaks for the rich, why does this sound like the unionized democrats patter both locally and nationally?
What have the good old boys who have been running this state forever done for RI, yes, that are right, NOTHING good for the state but sure have lined their pockets at our cost.
We know who you are Patriot Majority, Unionized Democrats in sheep’s clothing.
paul zecchino
10:17am on Tuesday, September 25, 2012
The communists' hatred of the Koch family is longstanding and dates back to the 1920s, when the Kochs built many of the industrial and petroleum plants in Europe and the fledgling soviet union.
Jerome Livschitz was stalin's 'liason to the west', assigned to steal technology from developed countries. Livschitz made it plain to the Kochs that he despised them for no apparent reason, and stated that he hated America, Americans, and the west in general. Why? Because the left is hate.
One of the Kochs pulled the miserable Livschitz from a burning car wreck. Livschitz was thoroughly perplexed and angry, telling the Kochs he could not understand why anyone would bother to save someone else's life. That is a classic example of the soulless, mindless left which hates because it is hate.
Livschitz taunt to the Kochs, who helped bring the soviets out of the stone age, was, 'We communists will make you rotten to the core.'
Thus far, they've met with some success.
The left hates the Kochs because the left is hate. Put a ham sandwich in front of these cholerics, they'd hate that as well.
Give each one of 'em a million, they'd burn it and demand a billion.
paul zecchino
10:21am on Tuesday, September 25, 2012
If anyone is attacking anything, it is the left which has been attacking America for at least one hundred years, and in particular the last three and one half years.
The left is its accusations. To know what the left is thinking, doing, and planning to do, all one needs to do is listen to what it accuses everyone else of doing. The left is a crime syndicate. Its statements are masterpieces of criminal projection.
paul zecchino
10:22am on Tuesday, September 25, 2012
'Patriot Majority' comprises thirty people? The left truly has a gift for irony.
george pratt
11:06am on Tuesday, September 25, 2012
I'm so glad no trees were killed to spread this nonsense. The Koch brothers don't even know what state Rhode Islands in.
Malachi Constant
11:36am on Tuesday, September 25, 2012
I can almost read the next Travis Rowley column now.....
Captain Blacksocks
3:08pm on Tuesday, September 25, 2012
If the democrats and unions are so good for the citizens of RI, how do you explain the fact the democrat/union control of RI has made us one of the most currupt, highest unemployment and business-unfriendly states in the USA? It's amazing that RI'ers keep on rewarding the democrat/union politicians, not matter how far they drag this state down. This state really deserves to be in the mess it's in. You voted for it. Don't complain when it gets worse.