Talk:Republican National Committee

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The Republican National Committee (or RNC) is the official organization representing the Republican Party in American politics and serves as the party's main fundraising arm.

Koch Wiki

The Koch brothers -- David and Charles -- are the right-wing billionaire co-owners of Koch Industries. As two of the richest people in the world, they are key funders of the right-wing infrastructure, including the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) and the State Policy Network (SPN). In SourceWatch, key articles on the Kochs include: Koch Brothers, Koch Industries, Americans for Prosperity, American Encore, and Freedom Partners.

Ties to the Koch Brothers

With donations of $111,600 and $57,700 respectively, Charles and David Koch are among the biggest backers of the RNC.[1] The political action committee of Koch Industries has also contributed $15,000. Campaign finance rules limit the amount donors can give, but in 2014 the RNC chairman Reince Priebus filed a joint lawsuit together with Louisiana Republicans in an attempt to be granted the right to raise unlimited amounts of cash from individual donors.[2] In a comment to the lawsuit, Jason Easley and Sarah Jones note that "as Harry Reid said recently, the Koch brothers are trying to remake the Republican Party. The point of this lawsuit is to let the Koch brothers, and other right wing billionaires, directly buy the RNC."[3]

2014 Elections

As of June 26 2014, the Republican National Committee has raised $48 million in contributions in support of GOP candidates for the 2014 midterm elections. Among the top donors are Friends of John Boehner ($250,000), InPro Corp ($181,200), as well as a number of investment firms such as Stephens Group ($162,000), Goldman Sachs ($145,600), Mount Vernon Investments ($133,100) and Windway Capital ($131,700).[4]It has so far spent more than $18 million on telemarketing and more than $25 million on direct mail.[5]

Leadership

As of June 2014:[6]

  • Reince Priebus, Chairman
  • Sharon Day, Co-Chairman
  • Tony Parker, Treasurer
  • Demetra DeMonte, Secretary
  • John Ryder, General Counsel
  1. Republican National Committee, "Conservative Transparency," financial data, accessed July 3, 2014.
  2. Phillip Elliot, ["http://bigstory.ap.org/article/rnc-files-lawsuit-raise-unlimited-cash RNC files lawsuit to raise unlimited cash,]" Associated Press, May 23, 2014.
  3. Jason Easley and Sarah Jones, "Republicans Are Suing The FEC to Give The Koch Brothers More Power To Steal Your Vote," Politicus USA, May 23, 2014.
  4. Open Secrets, "RNC Profile," accessed June 26, 2014.
  5. Open Secrets, "RNC Profile," accessed June 26, 2014.
  6. The Republican Party, "Our Party:Leadership," organizational website, accessed June 26, 2014.