The political network overseen by industrialist billionaires Charles and David Koch on Saturday pledged to spend nearly $400 million on the midterm elections to defend Republican majorities in Congress and in state legislatures across the country.
The Koch network, meeting for its annual winter donor conference near Palm Springs, Calif., said the investment would also focus on promoting conservative policies and was equal to a 60 percent increase over what it spent in the 2016 presidential election. The campaign was set to include a $20 million expenditure to promote the Republican tax overhaul passed and signed into law late last year.
“We’re all in,” Tim Phillips, president of Americans for Prosperity, told reporters during a news conference to kick off the conference at the Renaissance Esmeralda Indian Wells Resort and Spa.
Phillips conceded that the political environment for Republicans is “challenging,” though he declined to pin the blame on President Trump and his low job approval ratings and instead credited the toxic atmosphere for the GOP to historical trends that have seen the party in control of the White House lose seats in most midterms. – READ MORE
[give_form id=”79809″] [divider][/divider]A telling new survey by the Pew Research Center reveals that Democrats who considered the economy a top priority under the Obama administration have changed their tune now that the economy has taken off under Trump.
The results of the survey are stark. In 2013, an overwhelming majority of the Democratic party (87 percent) said that strengthening the economy was a top priority, whereas today just 64 percent of Democrats say they consider the economy a key issue.
Something similar has occurred in Democrats’ appreciation for the importance of jobs. In 2013, 81 percent of Democrats said they viewed improving the nation’s job situation as a top policy goal, while today just 58 percent of Democrats say this.
Taking the place of the economy and employment among Democrats’ top priorities are global warming and environmental protection. Today, 68 percent of Democrats and those leaning Democratic say that addressing climate change should be a top priority for Trump and Congress, Pew found. By contrast, a scant 18 percent of Republicans and Republican leaners say it is a top priority. – READ MORE
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