Democrats campaign against "obscure" Koch brothers...who?!!!

The amazing piece of reporting below does all it can to make the Koch brothers influence seem petty and ridiculously small. How could these "obscure" brothers, who are publically unrecognizable, be so "significantly troubling?"

AP: Democratic Senate candidates ... are gambling they can turn voters against two billionaire brothers funding the attacks — even if few Americans would recognize the pair on the street … Democrats are denouncing Charles and David Koch, the key figures behind millions of dollars in conservative TV ads hammering Democratic candidates and their ties to President Barack Obama ... the Koch brothers, who rarely appear in public, are so significant and troubling that voters should reject the Republican candidates benefiting from their ads.

Who are these..."Coke" brothers, and why are liberals being so unfair?

Democrats depict the Kansas-based Koch (pronounced "Coke") brothers as self-serving oil barons who pay huge sums to try to "buy" elections and advance their agenda of low taxes and less regulation. And they're using unusually harsh language in the Senate.

Here's Politico's Mike Allen with a little talked about story about how the Koch's are doing their own ad campaigns now:



Here's the meak and mild Sen. Harry Reid:

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid: "I guess if you make that much money, you can make these immoral decisions. The Koch brothers are about as un-American as anyone I can imagine."

Republican Sen. Jerry Moran of Kansas defended the Kochs and compared Reid's remarks to the communist-baiting tactics of Joseph McCarthy. "I can't imagine that's an effective tool," said Moran, who chairs the Senate Republicans' campaign committee.

Democratic pollster Geoff Garin says Americans, when given this basic information, believe the brothers are trying to elect a government that helps them at the expense of less wealthy people, who would fare better under Democratic policies.

Republican Richard Burr: "I don't think there's any resentment to a group or individual spending their money to tell people what's really going on."

What's REALLY going on? Give me a break. My conservative friend in Milwaukee sent me this: "WISN's Dan O'Donnell reports that the boogeymen of the left give just a tiny fraction of the money that employee unions have spent..." The problem is, the totals O'Donnell talked about dated back to 1989, and NOT just the last five years or so. Deceptive, sure, but that's how the game is played.

Here's Rachel Maddow's look at the Koch's early spending spree:

Here are the Koch highlights from the documentary "(Astro) Turf Wars."



Still more odds and ends:

Republicans note that liberal billionaires also spend heavily on politics … (like) environmentalist and hedge-fund manager Tom Steyer … Democrats say Steyer will not benefit financially by pushing his climate change agenda, whereas the Kochs' campaign ... would help big businesses like theirs.

Reid: "Think about what an America rigged by the Koch brothers would look like. The Koch brothers don't care about creating a strong public education system in America" … nor a "strong safety net of Medicare and Social Security" or "a guarantee of affordable, quality health insurance for every American. Why? Because the Koch brothers can afford to buy all those benefits and more for themselves. I'm going to keep talking about them every chance I get because America should not be for sale."

Matt Canter of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign committee: "We've done extensive polling ... Voters understand that Republicans are pushing a policy agenda that is good for their benefactors, the Koch brothers. The message we've tested does not rest on them knowing who Charles and David Koch are." In state after state, Democrats are berating the Kochs in speeches and fundraising appeals.

Koch industries spokesman Steve Lombardo defended the ads ... "it is unfortunate that Harry Reid is focused on attacking citizens of the United States rather than the problems facing this country." He said "I think the American people are smart and will see through this tactic," Lombardo said.

Who's attacking "citizens of the United States?