In a move that's kind of like asking late-'90s era Puff Daddy to publicly evaluate the relative merits of the Notorious B.I.G., Time magazine asked Karl Rove to write a short piece about the Koch brothers for the magazine's annual 100 Most Influential People feature.
Believe it or not, the GOP strategist, fundraiser and pundit — who is one of the most important players in the world of anti-Obama political spending from undisclosed donors — thinks the Koch brothers, who spent around $400 million during the 2012 elections, are just the bees' knees.
"David and Charles Koch are patriots," Rove begins in his paean to the billionaire industrial heirs. "By grit, persistence and hard work, they built a $100 billion-a-year business that employs tens of thousands."
He continues: "They care deeply about the values that make success in America possible — free markets, freedom, limited government and competition." And that's why, Rove says, the Koch brothers have decided to donate generously to conservative politicians and causes.
"For this," Rove adds, "they have been excoriated by the left, while the left remains hypocritically quiet when George Soros, Tom Steyer and other left-of-center rich spend to influence politics."
Rove's conclusion is a pretty good summary for the right wing's relationship with the über-rich Kochs. "Bless them for all they do," Rove writes, "and all the liberals they send into orbit."
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