Hundreds Protest Outside Koch Brothers' Retreat

Demonstrators blast billionaire conservatives' 'corporate greed'
By Matt Cantor,  Newser Staff
Posted Jan 31, 2011 6:56 AM CST
Hundreds Protest Outside Koch Brothers' Retreat
David Koch and his wife Julie Koch attend the American Museum of Natural History's 2010 Museum Gala at the American Museum of Natural History on November 18, 2010 in New York City.   (Getty Images)

Nearly a thousand protesters rallied against two major conservative backers at a California resort yesterday, slamming “corporate greed” as they chanted and waved signs. The Rancho Las Palmas resort was the site of a meeting of top conservatives held by the Koch brothers, who run the country’s second-biggest private company and fund libertarian and Tea Party initiatives. Wealthy donors are “drowning us out,” said a protester. “Their voices are louder.”

The protest was largely peaceful but ended after 25 demonstrators were arrested for trespassing. Protesters focused on a Supreme Court decision allowing corporations to give directly to political campaigns, the Los Angeles Times reports. The decision means “it's not who you vote for, it's how much money you've got,” said an activist. The Kochs’ meeting—attended by House Majority Leader Eric Cantor among other elected officials, political donors, and strategists—sought to fight the federal deficit and help “grow our economy,” said a rep. Click for more on the Koch brothers.
(More David Koch stories.)

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