The battle between backers of a new, publicly-owned bridge to Canada (including Governor Rick Snyder) and those who oppose it (including Manuel “Matty” Moroun, the owner of the current bridge, the Ambassador Bridge) just took a turn for the weird and expensive with Koch Brothers-funded Americans for Prosperity entering the fray:
A pro-business, anti-government group known as Americans for Prosperity plans to launch a campaign Monday to oppose a new publicly owned bridge to Canada.The group is a Michigan chapter of a nationwide group founded by former Texas congressman Dick Armey, a conservative Republican who had promoted various tea party efforts.
Jake Davison, a spokesman for the Michigan chapter of Americans for Prosperity, said details will be unveiled Monday about the campaign against the New International Trade Crossing, the publicly owned bridge project formerly known as the Detroit River International Crossing, including which specific tactics will be used and “what lawmakers and districts will be targeted.”
~SNIP~
Americans for Prosperity receives a major portion of its funding from the Koch brothers, oil billionaires who have bankrolled anti-regulation and tea party events and organizations…
There is speculation that the effort is being run by conservative pundit Dick Morris who was hired by Moroun to give him advice on how to fight the competitive threat. Jeff Wattrick at MLive suggests that if this is the case, bridge supporters have nothing to worry about:
If there is one thing the prostitute-loving consultant responsible for correctly predicting the epic Hillary Clinton-Condi Rice 2008 presidential election is known for these days, it’s losing. Badly.
Still, Moroun has got to be tickled pink that the tea party-flogging, astroturfing Americans for Prosperity have opened their checkbook to target Senators Judy Emmons, Geoff Hansen and Dave Hildenbrand because they have yet to take a position.
Cue the ads lying about the details of the bridge deal and how it will kill your grandma in three … two … one …
Keep in mind that the last time the Americans for Prosperity spent money in Michigan, we got Congressman Tim Walberg.
Oh boy. I’ll say this much: politics certainly does make for interesting bedfellows when you have the Koch Brothers on the opposite side of a Midwestern Republican governor.
I’m just sayin’…
