Republican mega-donors think they're better strategists than Karl Rove

A handful of super wealthy donors spent billions to support the Republicans in the last election, and they got little to show for their money, at least on the national level. That's led some billionaires, like David and Charles Koch's Americans for Prosperity, to shift their spending to state (or even local) races. Others, "like Paul Singer, the billionaire Republican investor, have expanded their in-house political shops, building teams of loyal advisers and researchers to guide and coordinate their giving," says Nicholas Confessore in The New York Times:

The Republican donors who have financed the party's vast outside-spending machine are turning against the consultants and political strategists they once lavished with hundreds of millions of dollars.... "The Karl Rove thing is out," said one donor, who asked for anonymity because he did not want to offend Mr. Rove. "The Koch thing is in." [New York Times]

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Peter Weber, The Week US

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.