Koch Latino group launches campaign against reconciliation bill

The Libre Initiative, a Latino conservative advocacy group within billionaire mega-donor Charles Koch’s political network, on Friday launched an ad campaign in opposition to the multitrillion-dollar reconciliation bill being negotiated by Democrats.

Libre’s ad campaign will run in Arizona, Texas and Florida, and will include mailers and digital ads aimed at Hispanic audiences.

“The economic opportunity that so many Hispanics in this country have come here searching for is on the line,” said Daniel Garza, president of The Libre Initiative.

“Instead of trying to grow the economy so that more and more Americans – including those in our Hispanic community – can find work and enjoy the fruits of their labor, lawmakers in Washington are proposing massive tax hikes to pay for one of the biggest expansions of the federal government in our country’s history,” he added.

The reconciliation package under consideration includes what Democrats have referred to as “human infrastructure,” and carries a price tag that could reach $3.5 trillion.

There is tension between moderate and progressive Democrats as to the ultimate price tag, and what programs should be included, from green energy initiatives to social services like universal child care.

The Libre Initiative, a promoter of the benefits of free markets among Hispanic communities, will target the reconciliation package’s overall size, its tax hikes, its energy initiatives and its expansion of government health care programs.

“As an organization committed to empowering the Hispanic community, we will not look the other way and allow this unfettered and reckless spending spree to continue unabated,” said Garza.

“We will inform the Latino community about the negative effects of these harmful economic policies and mobilize our grassroots army of volunteers and activists to hold our elected officials accountable,” he added.

The reconciliation package could also include immigration provisions popular among Hispanic communities, but the Democrats’ first immigration proposal was nixed after being deemed to be outside Senate rules.

A reconciliation package is not subject to the Senate’s filibuster, which means Democrats can pass the bill without any Republican support, but all its provisions must have a direct budgetary impact.