David Koch died, Congressman Joseph Kennedy announced he’s looking at a race to unseat Senator Edward Markey in a Democratic primary – did I miss anything else?
The devastation of Hurricane Dorian and increasingly unstable weather patterns as climate change presses upon us serve as miserable reminders of the political legacy of David Koch. He and his brother Charles are the most culpable of the climate change deniers who have plagued the planet and made it impossible for America to lead in fighting or mitigating the consequences of man-made extreme weather changes. Their endless ability to spend dark money has essentially taken over the Republican Party, helping to convert it into the anti-scientific imbecilic shell it now is. As The Intercept’s Lee Fang wrote in David Koch’s Most Significant Legacy Is the Election of Donald Trump (based on work by my former colleague Tom Ferguson and co-authors) dark money poured into Wisconsin in 2016 probably cost Clinton that key state, and others.
The Koch influence has not been wanting in Massachusetts. Koch Industries sponsors a faux interview series named “Bold Types” at the Boston Globe. David Koch has been one of the leading yearly donors to Boston’s Pioneer Institute, consistently landing in the “Peters Circle” category of donors who give at least $100,000. Where the rest of us see our political sway cease when we do, David can maintain political influence in perpetuity with contributions from his trusts. Democracy in action..
Joseph Kennedy moved forward in his quest to push aside Markey, declaring that “I hear the folks who say I should wait my turn, but with due respect — I’m not sure this is a moment for waiting.” The Kennedys have not historically been turn-waiters. John F. Kennedy was elected to Congress at 29, the Senate at 36, and the presidency at 43. Ted Kennedy did have to wait – but that’s only because he was too young to meet the constitutional age requirement to serve in the Senate when his brother resigned to assume the presidency. So the Kennedys installed a family friend in the seat and once Ted hit thirty, he was in. Whether Congressman Kennedy has properly measured the Pressley-Ocasio zeitgeist against the prospect of a young white male replacing an older white male remains to be seen.
CommonwealthMagazine “obtained” a survey about the potential race conducted by a firm that does online polling. Reader question: how reliable and accurate are online polls? As if to bolster the poll’s credibility, CW added that the firm’s head had been first data scientist at PayPal and Linkedin. Reader question: is he trained in survey research? And if you want to know if online polls are credible, why not just open the office door and shout down the hall to MassInc Polling president Steve Koczela? He’d know. The horse race question was a late throw-in on an education poll for pro-charter schools operation Education Reform Now Action, which funds privatizer front Democrats for Education Reform of Massachusetts (who could have who leaked that poll to CW?). Education Reform Now is a dark money operation that has accepted millions from right wingers like Ken Langone, Rupert Murdoch, and the Walton family. PayPal was founded by libertarian Trumpster Peter Thiel. Linkedin was founded by charter school dark money distributor Reid Hoffman. The CW story didn’t include the actual question, and the poll itself was not shared with readers. But at least we have a fuzzy horse race number for a race a year away that may not happen.
Oh, and a 17 year old Palestinian arriving at Logan to attend Harvard was barred entry into the home of the brave because of his friends’ social media posts. Nothing says America is bigger and badder than ever than being afraid of a teenage boy. MAGA.
[Full disclosure: as an educator in the UMass system, I am a union member. I write about dark money, not education.]