>>THIS IS AN INTERESTING STORY ON A COUPLE COUNTS.
ONE, IT'S
THE KOCH BROTHERS VERSUS DONALD TRUMP.
WHO IS GOING TO WIN?
FOR
THE MOMENT BEING I HAVE AN ANSWER, THAT'S AT THE END.
SECONDLY IT'S INTERESTING BECAUSE THE DONORS HAVE BECOME
SO BRAZEN THAT THEY ARE BASICALLY FLAUNTING THE BRIBES
THEY HAVE FOR POLITICIANS OUT IN PUBLIC.
BEFORE THAT USED TO BE A
LITTLE EMBARRASSED, THEY WOULD DO IT SUBTLY, THEY WOULD DO IT
PRIVATELY AND IN THE DARK -- NOW THEY JUST COME OUT AND TELL THE
PRESS.
CNN IS REPORTING --
>>BUT THEY ARE GOING TO GET MORE SPECIFIC.
THE KOCH BROTHERS
HAVE AN UMBRELLA ORGANIZATION THAT FEEDS INTO ALL THESE
DIFFERENT SO-CALLED THINK TANKS.
THEY ARE NOT THINKING ABOUT A
DAMN THING, THEY DO EXACTLY AS THE KOCH BROTHERS TELL THEM TO
DO, AND THE KOCH BROTHERS DO THIS BASED ON ALMOST PURELY
THEIR OWN BUSINESS INTERESTS.
IT AIN'T ABOUT FREEDOM OR ANY SORT
OF CONSERVATIVE IDEOLOGY, IT'S OBVIOUSLY ABOUT HOW AM I GOING
TO GET BIGGER TAX CUTS BECAUSE THAT WILL SAVE ME BILLIONS OF
DOLLARS, HOW AM I GOING TO GET DEREGULATION BECAUSE THAT SAVES
MY INDUSTRIES MONEY -- THEY DON'T LIKE TRUMP ON A COUPLE OF
COUNTS, ON THE HEALTHCARE BILL THEY DON'T THINK IT IS DRACONIAN
ENOUGH, AND THEY DON'T LIKE THE TRADE WARS HE THREATENS BECAUSE
IT AFFECTS THEIR OTHER BUSINESS INTERESTS.
SO THEY SEND OUT
THEIR CRONIES, IN THIS CASE TIM PHILLIPS, PRESIDENT OF AMERICANS
FOR PROSPERITY -- THAT GROUP IS AT LEAST SOMEWHAT HONESTLY
LABELED, THEY ARE LIKE, WE ARE FOR THE PROSPEROUS AND NOT FOR
YOU.
ANYWAY, TIM PHILLIPS SAYS --
>>DOES TRUMPCARE REALLY KEEP OBAMACARE INTACT?
OF COURSE NOT,
THAT'S A PREPOSTEROUS THING TO SAY. 25 MILLION PEOPLE WILL LOSE
THEIR HEALTH INSURANCE.
BUT ACCORDING TO THE KOCH BROTHERS,
NOT RIGHT-WING ENOUGH.
I WANT IT MORE DECIMATED SO I CAN HAVE
FURTHER TAX CUTS FOR THE RICH.
THEN TIM PHILLIPS SAYS --
>>NOW, IF THIS WASN'T BACKED UP BY MONEY YOU COULD SAY LOOK, I'M
GOING TO HELP THE GUYS I LIKE AND HURT THE GUYS THAT VOTE
AGAINST ME, I GET IT.
BUT HERE THEY JUST ANNOUNCED THEY HAVE A
NEW MULTIMILLION DOLLAR FUND, AND THEN THEY COME OUT AND SAY
YES, WE WILL GIVE YOU A TON OF MONEY IF YOU VOTE WITH US, AND
IF YOU DON'T VOTE WITH US ON HEALTHCARE WE WON'T GIVE YOU THE
MONEY.
AMERICANS HAVE A NAME FOR THAT, IT'S CALLED BRIBERY.
BUT
THE SUPREME COURT MADE IT LEGAL.
MONEY IS SPEECH, THEY ARE JUST
TALKING TO THEM.
THE KOCH BROTHERS ARE JUST HAVING A
CONVERSATION WITH THE CONGRESSMAN AND SAYING YOU WILL
EITHER GET MILLIONS OF DOLLARS OR YOU WON'T.
BRIBERY, WHAT NAME
SO?
I DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU ARE TALKING ABOUT.
THOSE ARE JUST
HONEST, INDEPENDENT EXPENDITURES.
THAT IS JUST
SPEECH.
THE REST OF US KNOW THIS, BUT THE ESTABLISHMENT IN
WASHINGTON THINKS THIS IS BUSINESS AS USUAL.
THAT IS WHY
WE'RE SICK OF WASHINGTON.
CNN EXPLAINS --
>>THAT IS AN AWFUL LOT OF MONEY TO HAVE AT THEIR DISPOSAL AND TO
BE ABLE TO DELIVER THOSE BRIBES TO THOSE POLITICIANS WHO VOTE
THE WAYS THAT HELP THE KOCH BROTHERS.
THOSE BRIBES MIGHT
HAVE BEEN LEGALIZED, BUT THEY ARE STILL BRIBES.
IF YOU ARE
THINKING WELL, MAYBE CNN TOOK THEM OUT OF CONTEXT OR
SOMETHING, NO, THEY RETWEETED CNN'S STORY JUST TO MAKE SURE
EVERYONE KNOWS WE WEREN'T KIDDING AND WE ARE THREATENING
YOU, AND YES WE WILL GIVE YOU THE MONEY IF YOU VOTE OUR WAY.
TIM PHILLIPS THEN WENT TO OTHER OUTLETS, INCLUDING TALKING
POINTS MEMO, QUOTING HIM AS SAYING --
>>AND THEY ALSO WENT TO POLITICO, THEY WENT EVERYWHERE.
HERE IS JAMES DAVIS, FREEDOM PARTNERS EXECUTIVE VICE
PRESIDENT, ANOTHER KOCH GROUP --
>>NOW THAT WE KNOW WHERE THE BRIBES ARE GOING, WHAT WAS THE
RESULT?
REPUBLICANS WERE SUPPOSED TO HAVE A VOTE TODAY.
YOU KNOW WHAT HAPPENED?
NO VOTE.
OOPS.
LOOKS LIKE THE KOCH
BROTHERS WON THIS ROUND.
I WANT TO BE CLEAR ON WHAT THEY WANTED,
SO LET'S GO TO AN EXPLANATION NOW FROM HUFFINGTON POST --
>>THE FREEDOM CAUCUS IS THE MORE RIGHT-WING GUYS, THE GUYS
THAT THE KOCH BROTHERS LIKE --
>>SO THE KOCH BROTHERS HAVE SAID NO, YOU WILL KEEP NO PART
OF OBAMACARE.
YES, THE RICH ARE GOING TO GET A $600 BILLION TAX
BREAK EVEN UNDER THE NEW HEALTH CARE PLAN, YES 25 MILLION PEOPLE
WILL LOSE THEIR INSURANCE, YES SENIOR CITIZENS WILL HAVE TO PAY
A LOT MORE, BUT IT IS STILL NOT ENOUGH.
MAKE SURE YOU HIT THE
YOUNG AND THE PEOPLE WHO ARE UNDER 26, THEY ARE LIVING WITH
THEIR PARENTS, THEY CAN'T HAVE THEIR PARENTS' INSURANCE
ANYMORE.
YOU HAVE A PRE-EXISTING CONDITION?
YOUR PROBLEM, NOT
MINE.
IN THE KOCH BROTHERS HAVE THE AUDACITY TO CONTRIBUTE TO
THINGS LIKE CANCER RESEARCH, BUT IF YOU HAVE CANCER AND IT'S A
PRE-EXISTING CONDITION, SORRY, YOU CAN'T HAVE HEALTH INSURANCE,
GO DIE IN THE STREETS.
BECAUSE I WANT TAX BREAKS.
BUT THEY WON
TODAY.
FINALLY HERE IS A DESCRIPTION OF WHAT HAPPENED --
>>NOW THIS IS IRONIC.
TRUMP FINDS HIMSELF IN THE SAME
POSITION AS OBAMA.
TRUMP IS NOW FINDING OUT THERE IS NO
APPEASING THE KOCH BROTHERS, THERE IS NO APPEASING THE
FREEDOM CAUCUS, THERE IS NO APPEASING THE EXTREME
RIGHT-WINGERS.
THEY ARE SO RIGHT-WING, THEY ARE NOW MAKING
TRUMP LOOK MODERATE.
HE IS NOWHERE NEAR MODERATE, HIS
HEALTH CARE PLAN IS A DISASTER, BUT THEY ARE EVEN FURTHER RIGHT
OF HIM, AND NO MATTER HOW MUCH HE CONCEDES TO THEM, JUST LIKE
OBAMA, HE FINDS OUT THERE ARE NEVER ENOUGH CONCESSIONS.
HE
SAYS MAYBE WE WILL KILL PRE-EXISTING CONDITIONS EVEN
THOUGH THEY ARE INCREDIBLY POPULAR, AND HE STILL DOESN'T
HAVE THEIR VOTE.
IT IS NEVER ENOUGH, THE GREED OF THE
REPUBLICAN DONORS IS ENDLESS, THERE IS NO BOTTOM TO THAT.
ON
TOP OF THAT NOW HE LOST THE MODERATES, BECAUSE HE'S LIKE I'M
RUNNING IN PENNSYLVANIA AND OTHER SWING STATES AND YOU TELL
ME TO TAKE AWAY THE ONE PART OF THE RULE EVERYONE LOVES,
PRE-EXISTING CONDITIONS, AND THROW 25 MILLION PEOPLE OFF OF
HEALTH INSURANCE AND CUT MEDICAID WHEN WE SAID WE
WOULDN'T?
SO RIGHT NOW THERE IS NO DEAL, I KNOW TRUMP THINKS
HE'S A GREAT DEAL MAKER, NO, THE DEAL HE PROPOSED GOT NEITHER
SIDE TO WORK WITH HIM.
SO WHAT THEY HAVE ON THEIR HANDS RIGHT
NOW IS AN ABSOLUTE MESS, BECAUSE AT THE END OF THE DAY THE ONE
THING THAT REPUBLICAN POLITICIANS LISTEN TO MOST IS
THEIR DONORS.
LESSON LEARNED.