Media Matters, George Soros and rightwing callers...

[JHB]

12. Soros holds a very prominent position... as designated bad guy

You may remember a phrase from the Reagan administration: "paint white hats on our guys and black hats on the other guys."

Soros had a black hat "painted" on him a long time ago, probably during the Clinton years, and have kept thumping the drumbeat whenever it was convenient.

After all, a goodly portion of the right is in love with the idea that liberals and leftists are all dupes or agents of some nefarious power. Saying that we were getting our marching orders "straight from the Kremlin" became untenable after the Soviet Union was dissolved, and blaming "political correctness" (which became a conservative buzzword at precisely that moment in history), while useful, still misses some of the qualities of a designated villain. Thus, conservatives stuff Soros into a Ming The Merciless costume and make a piñata out of him.

How many of the people who say "what about Soros" don't know that Charles and David Koch are each, individually richer than Soros? And have put more money toward influencing politics to their liking, for much longer, and far more strategically than Soros?

How many know that just the Koch Brothers plus Sheldon Adelson have about six times as much money as Soros?

Not many. Because their "trusted sources" can be trusted to never mention inconvenient things like that.