A corporation bought the House Energy and Commerce Committee
They waited until the election was over and the dirty deed done, but a few weeks ago, L.A. Times’ reporters finally revealed how the Supreme Court’s ruling declaring corporation’s “persons” who could give unlimited funds to politicians of their choice helped one corporation buy the House Energy and Commerce Committee.
Oil, coal, and gas billionaires David and Charles Koch gave $310,000 to current committee members, who are now staunch promoters of the destruction of the Environmental Protection Agency, which oversees the Koches’ core energy industry.
One committee member hired a former Koch Industries lawyer as his chief of staff. Its new chairman, Fred Upton, received $20,000 from Koch employees, and has reversed his moderate approach to environmental issues, leading the charge against the EPA, releasing a draft bill that would end the EPA’s ability to curb carbon emissions, relieving the Kochs of the “burden” of paying millions of dollars to reduce air pollution under current regulations.
The irony is that, as a privately owned business, Koch Industries is one of the often-cited “small businesses” (defined by the number of owners) the GOP is determined to deregulate to “stimulate the economy.”
Republicans have become the masters of the message. Truth be damned.
This article appears in Mar 17-24, 2011.