Charles Koch and Libertarianism
How to "Buy" a University
George Mason University is the home base of both Tyler Cowen and Alex
Tabarrok, both libertarian economists.
Alex Tabarrok got his Ph.D. in 1994
from GMU
Tyler Cowen got his B.S. in 1983 from
GMU
George Mason is the recipient of some generous funding from
the Charles G. Koch Foundation.The three Koch foundations
contributed $23,030,497 between 1985 and 2002 to the university,
its foundation and its Institute for Human Studies. (Media
Transparency)
From the GMU web site:
Through major gifts and commitments, the Charles G.
Koch Charitable Foundation has
significantly bolstered programs focused on market-based
solutions to social and economic problems. Its support has
provided the university with vital resources for fostering dialog
and innovation among scholars, policy experts, and government
leaders.
The Koch Foundation’s
generosity includes assistance in the recruitment in 2001 of
Vernon Smith and his team of six distinguished economics
professors to Mason. Smith, now a Nobel laureate, is a leader
in the growing field of experimental economics. At George Mason,
undergraduate and graduate students across related disciplines
evaluate the performance and function of real-world markets and
institutions.
Through the Koch Foundation,
George Mason University is helping to bridge academic learning
and real world practice. [my emphasis]
Charles G. Koch gets a bio in
Wikipedia. Here is an excerpt:
Koch is a libertarian and
supports many free-market organizations such as the Cato
Institute, which he founded together with Edward H. Crane and
Murray Rothbard in 1977.
Koch also funds the highly
selective Charles G. Koch Summer
Fellow Program through the Institute for Humane Studies.
Brother David H. Koch ran for vice
president for the Libertarian Party in 1980.
Koch Industries is the largest
privately held company in the country. The Koch family is part of the 18 super wealthy
families who have worked for the elimination of the state
tax.
From the report
(PDF) on this, each Koch brother
is worth about $12 billion and stands to have to pay about $4.7
billion in estate taxes, if not repealed. Koch Industries has spent $3.7 million on estate
tax lobbying since 1998.
The Koch family is also a
principle contributor to the Citizens for a Sound Economy (now
Freedom Works) which supports think-tanks like Cato and Heritage
foundation.
Alex Tabarrok is the research
director of the Independent Institute:
The John M. Olin Foundation gave in 1996 to The Independent
Institute $40,000 for "The promotion of two books: The Diversity
Myth, by David O. Sacks and Peter a Thiel; and The Melting Pot,
by Richard K. Vedder and Lowell E. Gallaway" and in 1998 another
$25,000 for "The Institute's book program".
The David H. Koch Charitable
Foundation gave in 1995 - 2001 in total $160,000 for "General
Operating Support".
The Earhart Foundation gave in 1998 - 2001 in total $46,095 to
support editor Dr. Robert Higgs.
The Castle Rock Foundation gave in 2002 for "General operating
support" $25,000.
Other GMU faculty affiliated with the Institute:
James M. Buchanan - Nobel Laureate in Economic Science
University Professor, Center for the Study of Public Choice,
George Mason University
Vernon L. Smith - Nobel Laureate in Economic Science; Professor
of Economics and Law, Interdisciplinary Center for Economic
Science, George Mason University
Gordon Tullock - University Professor of Law and Economics and
Distinguished Research Fellow, George Mason University
Richard E. Wagner - Hobart R. Hobart Professor of Economics,
George Mason University
Walter E. Williams - Distinguished Professor of Economics,
George Mason University
Donald J. Boudreaux - Chairman and Professor, Department of
Economics, George Mason University
Lloyd R. Cohen - Professor of Law, George Mason University
Tyler Cowen - Professor of Economics,
George Mason University
Bruce H. Kobayashi - Professor of Law, George Mason
University
William E. Kovacic - Professor of Law, George Mason
University
Gordon Tullock - University Professor of Law and Economics and
Distinguished Research Fellow, George Mason University
Richard E. Wagner - Hobart R. Hobart Professor of Economics,
George Mason University
The Mercatus Center at GMU's executive board includes Charles
Koch and Tyler
Cowen.
Koch is also involved with the
Claude R. Lambe Charitable Foundation.
A nice summary of the Koch
family's activities can be found at this page from Media
Transparency
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