Reid Admits that His Koch Attacks Are All for Show

The Senate’s majority leader admits that he’s Alinskying American citizens for fun and political profit.

Reid had a little Q&A with the Las Vegas Review-Journal. The paper confronted him about why he wants the DISCLOSE Act passed, and why he spends so much time attacking the Koch brothers (and so little time doing anything good for the country).

Reid’s lack of shame is remarkable.

• In response to the Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission decision of 2010, Reid called for a renewed push to pass the DISCLOSE Act, a law that would have forced all political organizations to report their donors. When I said the act would simply require reporting of the contributions, but not stop the flood of political money, Reid disagreed, and said it would especially stop those whose donations are shielded by law now.

“The DISCLOSE Act would stop a lot of money,” he said. “Those people that go with the secret money, they do it because they don’t want anybody to know they’re giving the money.”

Ironically enough, that answer seems to admit one of the primary arguments against full disclosure laws, which is that they would have a chilling effect on free speech. The U.S. Supreme Court, in several decisions, has acknowledged that chilling effect, but said laws such as the DISCLOSE Act impose a lighter burden on the First Amendment than laws that limit political contributions or spending.

That fear has been realized by the IRS’ conduct.

• Reid refused to back away from his criticism of the Koch brothers, oil billionaires who have funded a sprawling network of political groups, including Americans for Prosperity and groups focusing on veterans and seniors. “They’re trying to buy America,” Reid said. “I think having America for sale is not good.”

But he has no criticism at all for convicted felon George Soros, who has poured far more money into “buying America” than the Koch brothers have.

But a New York Times story published last month about the strategy puts a decidedly different spin on it. “Democrats say the strategy of spotlighting the Koch brothers’ activities is politically shrewd,” the story says. “The majority leader [Reid] was particularly struck by a presentation during a recent Senate Democratic retreat, which emphasized that one of the best ways to draw an effective contrast is to pick a villain, one of his aides said. And by scolding the Koch brothers, Mr. Reid is trying to draw them out, both to raise their public profile, and also to help rally the Democratic base. The approach stems, in part, from Democratic-funded research showing that many voters believe the political system is rigged in favor of the super rich.”

After I read that passage, Reid replied simply, “So?”

I pressed: “This is a political strategy, isn’t it, as well as a fundraising strategy? The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee has been raising money like gangbusters after you’ve been talking about the Koch brothers and as you said, you’ve given America the villain that they need to identify with as you struggle with your Democrats to overcome the objections to Obamacare and try to remain the majority.”

Again, Reid’s reply: “So?”

Reid admits in all that, that the DISCLOSE Act is as political as his attacks on the Koch brothers. There is no great principle motivating him, other than raw power. He only wants that law passed to scare conservative money out of the political process.