{"id":28744,"date":"2015-06-12T22:50:57","date_gmt":"2015-06-13T05:50:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/?p=28744"},"modified":"2015-06-12T22:56:25","modified_gmt":"2015-06-13T05:56:25","slug":"what-republican-party-fox-news-and-the-koch-brothers-have-replaced-the-gop","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/?p=28744","title":{"rendered":"What Republican Party? Fox News And The Koch Brothers Have Replaced The GOP"},"content":{"rendered":"

Everyday there is more and more evidence that the Republican Party is dissolving into the ether of a new political atmosphere. It began with Fox News usurping the PR responsibilities of the party. For anyone to advance in the GOP they had to go through Fox News. At the same time, the Koch brothers have been moving in on party operations and raising more campaign money than the party could ever hope to.<\/p>\n

\"Koch
\n<\/a><\/p>\n

News Corpse has covered this phenomenon in some detail here<\/a> and here<\/a>, examining how the interests of Fox News came to supersede those of the GOP:<\/p>\n

Fox has corralled a stable of the most disreputable, unqualified, extremist, lunatics ever assembled, and is presenting them as experts, analysts, and leaders. These third-rate icons of idiocy are marketed by Fox like any other gag gift (i.e. pet rocks, plastic vomit, Sarah Palin, etc.). […] The problem is that by elevating bona fide nutcases, they are debasing honest and informed discourse. The mental cases are crowding out any reasonable voices that might exist amongst the more moderate Republicans (if there are any left). Fox appears to have made a tactical decision to permit the inmates full run of the asylum. […] So even as this helps Rupert Murdoch\u2019s bottom line, it is making celebrities of political bottom-feeders. That can\u2019t be good for the long-term prospects of the Republican Party.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The trend is accelerating as we go into the 2016 presidential campaign season. Now Fox has appointed itself the gatekeeper of the GOP primary, wherein they will only permit the top ten Republican candidates, as determined by certain unnamed polls, to participate in their televised debates. Even Republican party operatives are opposed to this power grab by a media company.<\/p>\n

In addition to Fox News assuming the roll of party spokesman, the billionaire Koch brothers are angling to replace the party’s electoral architects by building and distributing the voter access tools and outreach capability that used to be the sole province of the political party. Yahoo News published an in-depth investigation<\/a> that shows how the Koch’s syndicate has moved in on party territory, much to the consternation of the party chieftains.<\/p>\n

“The RNC is now openly arguing, however, that the Kochs\u2019 political operation is trying to control the Republican Party\u2019s master voter file, and to gain influence over \u2014 some even say control of \u2014 the GOP.<\/p>\n

“‘I think it\u2019s very dangerous and wrong to allow a group of very strong, well-financed individuals who have no accountability to anyone to have control over who gets access to the data when, why and how,’ said Katie Walsh, the RNC\u2019s chief of staff.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

So if the Koch brothers end up running the electoral operations of Republican candidates, and Fox News continues its role in media strategy and execution, the only question that remains is: What’s left for the remnants of the Republican Party to do? They become an organization with no authority, responsibility, or relevance.<\/p>\n

If they don’t take steps to reverse these trends, and do it soon, the GOP will drift into an ignoble and faded history. Ordinarily, that might not seem like such a horrible idea. But if their replacement is Fox News and the Koch brothers, we might all be better off rooting for the GOP.<\/p>\n

\n

News Corpse Presents: The ALL NEW 2nd volume of
\nFox Nation vs. Reality: The Fox News Cult of Ignorance.<\/a>
\nAvailable now at Amazon.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Everyday there is more and more evidence that the Republican Party is dissolving into the ether of a new political atmosphere. It began with Fox News usurping the PR responsibilities of the party. For anyone to advance in the GOP they had to go through Fox News. At the same time, the Koch brothers have […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":28745,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"What Republican Party? Fox News And The Koch Brothers Have Replaced The GOP","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[152,1],"tags":[33,834,301],"class_list":["post-28744","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-election","category-general","tag-fox-news","tag-koch-brothers","tag-republicans"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/..\/Pix\/Trump\/koch-brothers-pick.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4Ijg-7tC","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":10632,"url":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/?p=10632","url_meta":{"origin":28744,"position":0},"title":"Fox News Carries Articles From Koch Bros-Funded “News” Service","author":"Mark NC","date":"9\/30\/2013","format":false,"excerpt":"An odd item appeared this morning on the Fox News web site attacking the progressive organization MoveOn.org. It was the sort of substanceless filler that generally appears on rabid anti-Obama fringe sites. Beneath a headline reading \"MoveOn.org tries to sideline Tea Party over shutdown fears,\" the article revealed the shocking\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General"","block_context":{"text":"General","link":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/?cat=1"},"img":{"alt_text":"Koch\/Fox News","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/..\/Pix\/Trump\/koch-news1.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":20179,"url":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/?p=20179","url_meta":{"origin":28744,"position":1},"title":"The Koch Brothers Are Secretly Funding The GOP’s Latino Outreach","author":"Mark NC","date":"8\/11\/2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Ever since President Obama crushed Mitt Romney in 2012 with 71% of the Latino vote, the Republican Party has made noises about broadening their base to include more minorities. For the most part their efforts have been limited to lip service, while their actions have served only to further alienate\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General"","block_context":{"text":"General","link":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/?cat=1"},"img":{"alt_text":"Koch Brothers Libre","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/..\/Pix\/Trump\/koch-bros-libre.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/..\/Pix\/Trump\/koch-bros-libre.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/..\/Pix\/Trump\/koch-bros-libre.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":31014,"url":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/?p=31014","url_meta":{"origin":28744,"position":2},"title":"The Plaintive Wailing Of A Republican Party Crumbling Under The Weight Of Donald Trump","author":"Mark NC","date":"2\/25\/2016","format":false,"excerpt":"As this wacky election season continues to spiral out of control, the sound of an increasingly impotent Republican Party scratching at the door is becoming ever more noticeable. The so-called establishment candidates are falling to the wayside as a creature manufactured by reality TV lumbers across the GOP landscape, flattening\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Election"","block_context":{"text":"Election","link":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/?cat=152"},"img":{"alt_text":"Trumpzilla","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/..\/Pix\/Trump\/trump-zilla.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/..\/Pix\/Trump\/trump-zilla.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/..\/Pix\/Trump\/trump-zilla.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":13609,"url":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/?p=13609","url_meta":{"origin":28744,"position":3},"title":"Fox Nation vs. Reality: Was Benghazi A Koch Brothers Plot?","author":"Mark NC","date":"5\/4\/2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has taken a courageous stand of late against the democracy-defiling Koch brothers. He has correctly assailed them for bankrolling dishonest campaigns and offensive Tea Party front groups. However, he has never said what Fox Nation is now reporting that he said: For more shameless lying\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General"","block_context":{"text":"General","link":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/?cat=1"},"img":{"alt_text":"Fox Nation","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/..\/Pix\/Trump\/foxnation-reality-reid-koch.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/..\/Pix\/Trump\/foxnation-reality-reid-koch.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/..\/Pix\/Trump\/foxnation-reality-reid-koch.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":14581,"url":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/?p=14581","url_meta":{"origin":28744,"position":4},"title":"Shadowy Koch Brothers-Backed Group Links Up With Fox News To Sway Midterms","author":"Mark NC","date":"5\/20\/2014","format":false,"excerpt":"As the midterm elections heat up this year, Fox News will begin to shift their attention from hysteria involving Benghazi to hysteria involving Democratic candidates and campaigns. Not that their fictionalized Benghazi horror stories won't be a part of the mix, but the selection will be expanded to include more\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General"","block_context":{"text":"General","link":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/?cat=1"},"img":{"alt_text":"Fox News","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/..\/Pix\/Trump\/foxnews-koch-soros-shadowy.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/..\/Pix\/Trump\/foxnews-koch-soros-shadowy.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/..\/Pix\/Trump\/foxnews-koch-soros-shadowy.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":3018,"url":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/?p=3018","url_meta":{"origin":28744,"position":5},"title":"Fox News: Architects Of The Vast Right-Wing Conspiracy","author":"Mark NC","date":"10\/20\/2010","format":false,"excerpt":"When Hillary Clinton coined the term \"Vast Right-Wing Conspiracy\" twelve years ago, many members of the VRWC ridiculed her and denied their own existence. Now Think Progress is in receipt of a private memo from the billionaire Koch brothers inviting some of the country's wealthiest and most powerful individuals and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Election"","block_context":{"text":"Election","link":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/?cat=152"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28744","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=28744"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28744\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28749,"href":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28744\/revisions\/28749"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/28745"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=28744"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=28744"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newscorpse.com\/ncWP\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=28744"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}