Koch Brothers Want to Raise $290 Million for New Super PAC

image
Published: 20 Jun, 2014
3 min read

Midterm elections tend to see lower voter turnout and less interest from the media. Midterm primary elections have even more paltry turnout numbers among those that even are able to vote.

This year’s primary season though has been particularly interesting so far from Mississippi’s surprising run-off election between Thad Cochran and Chris McDaniel to Eric Cantor’s stunning defeat in Virginia.

Now, heading into the general election, there is another twist from two Koch brothers, David and Charles: they founded a new super PAC called the Freedom Partners Action Fund.

Super PACs, or super political action committees, originated in 2010 with the now widely known Citizens United Supreme Court case. Before the case, PACs existed that could support a cause or candidate; however, they were heavily regulated, particularly in how much individuals were allowed to contribute. The max before 2010 per individual was $2,500, while unions and corporations were restricted from making donations.

The Supreme Court, however, ruled in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission that there would no longer be a limitation on how much individuals could donate to these organizations, nor could corporations or unions be restricted in their funding. Campaign donations were equated with free speech, and therefore, could not be limited. Corporations and unions were granted that same right.

Soon after, in a correlate ruling, SpeechNow.org v. Federal Election Commission, the legality of super PACs was established and a new sort of political donation entity was born.

The Koch brothers have a storied history in contributing money to political issues they cared about that far predates these cases. Specifically with PACs, as Daniel Schulman explains in his recently published book, Sons of Wichita, it was during the Clinton administration that the Koch brothers worked through advocacy groups such as Citizens for a Sound Economy to fight health care reform and other parts of Clinton’s legislative agenda.

An outshoot of that group eventually became Americans for Prosperity, which funded the most ardent anti-Obama activity early in his term.

By the time the

Citizens United ruling came down, the Koch’s were liberated to use their vast fortune to fight Obama’s agenda and push for libertarian causes. Schulman reports that the Kochs and their advisers agreed to spend $400 million on these activities which was made possible by “the gradual weakening of campaign finance laws and the rise of super-Pacs and ‘dark money’ nonprofits that allowed individuals and corporations to influence the political system as never before.”

This staggering amount of funds tended to focus on issue-based campaigns that were ideologically grounded instead of focusing on individual candidates. For example, the Koch’s vast political funding supported projects like Act 10 in Wisconsin, which limited the right to collectively bargain in the state.

IVP Donate

With their new super PAC though, for the midterms alone, the Freedom Action Partners Fund said they aim to spend $15 million as part of a larger effort to raise a total of $290 million that shifts from issue-based backing to specific campaigns. The super PAC’s new treasurer, Thomas Maxwell, stated that the money will go to “support candidates who share our vision of free markets and a free society and oppose candidates who support intrusive government policies that push the American Dream out of reach for the American people.”

There is already a lot at stake in the 2014 midterm election to determine the direction of President Obama’s last two year in office. While political pundits such as Nate Silver strongly believe Republicans will continue to control the House, Republicans are only slightly favored to win the Senate, which means that current campaigning period is critical.

In breaking with their past emphasis on issue-based funding, the Koch brother’s new super PAC is a powerful signal of how they hope to be able to contribute to the elections.

You Might Also Like

Hillcrest
'Build, Baby, Build!' is NOT the Answer to Housing Crises
Can San Diego build its way out of its three-part housing crisis – supply, affordability and homelessness? Some of elected officials think so and are leading the charge. I have been in the real estate industry for 50-plus years, and I say they are on the wrong track....
27 Oct, 2025
-
4 min read
Isn't It Weird That Congress Feels No Urgency to Re-Open the Government?
Isn't It Weird That Congress Feels No Urgency to Re-Open the Government?
The U.S. has entered Day 22 of the latest government shutdown with no end in sight. As pundits expect it to surpass the 35-day record set during Trump’s first term, a new Gallup poll shows voters’ approval of Congress has plummeted in the last month. Yet, for congressional leaders, there isn’t any urgency to re-open the government. House Speaker Mike Johnson and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries trade jabs back and forth in the media, but the blame game continues to be prioritized over solutions....
22 Oct, 2025
-
5 min read
Proposition 50 voter guide
California Prop 50: Partisan Power Play or Necessary Counterpunch?
November 4 marks a special election for what has become the most controversial ballot measure in California in recent memory: Proposition 50, which would circumvent congressional districts drawn by the state’s independent redistricting commission for a legislative-drawn map....
01 Oct, 2025
-
9 min read