At a January 2015 annual winter donor retreat near Palm Springs California, the billionaire brothers Charles G. and David H. Koch unveiled plans to spend and raise from approximately 300 coordinating donors close to $900 million for the 2016 campaign, which will probably be more than the amount spent by either the Republican Party or the Democratic Party A lot of this money will be raised before the primaries even begin, very likely giving the Kochs and their coordinated group of donors a lot of influence over who the Republican nominee will be. According to the New York Times, at least five potential presidential candidates were invited to the Koch event this year, “and four attended, including Gov. Scott Walker of Wisconsin. On Sunday evening, three of them — Senators Marco Rubio of Florida, Rand Paul of Kentucky and Ted Cruz of Texas — took part in a candidate forum on economic issues.”
For Republican voters who were not invited to attend this gathering, the question is whether a “Koch Caucus” such as this one will effectively replace traditional caucuses and primaries in the states. By the time candidate selection is formally made, will the outcome be a done deal. And how credible will the winner of the Koch Caucus be as a candidate with voters in a general election?
Those of us who would like to see a Republican in the White House can only hope that the Soros Caucus or the Steyer Caucus will organize a similar event for the Democrats who will choose a nominee even more out of touch with the concerns of ordinary voters.