The Supreme Court today delivered a unanimous decision rejecting a Koch-backed attempt to undermine equal representation. The Kochs’ assault on voting rights is well-documented; Evenwel vs. Abbott was another transparent “attempted Republican power grab” which sought to strip congressional representation from already underrepresented, vulnerable communities.
Justice Ginsberg’s opinion in Evenwel–joined by Justices Roberts, Kennedy, Breyer, Sotomayor, and Kagan–dismissed the appellants’ case as having “no mooring in the Equal Protection Clause,” adding that,“… history, precedent, and practice suffice to reveal the infirmity of appellants’ claims.”
Never missing an opportunity to stack the deck in their favor, the Kochs and their network of subservient groups prepared a litany of amicus briefs supporting Evenwel.
The Cato Institute – the Kochs’ flagship think tank – further cemented its shift away from its purported mission of furthering “American principles of liberty and limited government” by petitioning the court to undermine federalism and ignore “history, precedent, and practice” by imposing a uniform, mandated, and undemocratic system upon the states.
Joining the Cato Institute was The Reason Foundation, another beneficiary of Koch-cash. The Kochs’ influence over the Reason Foundation is not merely financial: David Koch also serves as a trustee for the group.
Additionally, other groups submitting amicus briefs including the Judicial Education Project, Mountain States Legal Project, Southeastern Legal Foundation, Judicial Watch, Immigration Reform Law Institute, and Project 21 (an initiative of the National Center for Public Policy Research,) are all recipients of significant financial support from Donors Trust and Donors Capital Fund. DonorsTrust and Donors Capital Fund were explicitly founded to operate as a shadowy back-channel for mega donors–including the Kochs.
The Kochs’ ties to DonorsTrust and Donors Capital Fund are not merely financial–their boardrooms are packed with Koch-connected members.
For more information on the Kochs’ assualt on voting rights and representation, check out: “Kochs, Voting Rights, And Race Relations.”