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REPORT: One of the Koch brothers just revealed which Republican 2016 candidate they support

Apr 21, 2015, 02:53 IST

Two of the most prominent and influential megadonors in the Republican Party reportedly have picked their man in the 2016 presidential race: Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R).

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According to The New York Times, David Koch told a Monday gathering of GOP donors that he and his fellow billionaire brother, Charles Koch, want Walker in the White House.

"We will support whoever the candidate is," Koch said at the Manhattan event, according to Times reporter Nick Confessore's sources. "But it should be Scott Walker."

The Koch brothers are two of the most free-spending donors in American politics, and they have a vast network of rich allies to help fund their various political organizations. Indeed, they reportedly plan on spending close to $1 billion in 2016, and liberals have long sought to make them the face of a broken campaign finance system.

Several Republican candidates were also thought to be aggressively pursuing the Kochs' support. Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Kentucky), Marco Rubio (R-Florida), and Rand Paul (R-Kentucky) all joined Walker at a Koch donor confab in January.

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Their support might not be a complete gamechanger for Walker, however. The Times reported that David Koch said his family might personally contribute to Walker's campaign, but their organizational network would remain neutral until a Republican nominee emerges from the primary.

"Koch suggested that the political organizations they oversee - which include Americans for Prosperity, a grass-roots organization, and Freedom Partners, a donor trade group with an affiliated super PAC - would not intervene in the Republican primary process on behalf of a single candidate," Confessore wrote.

A spokesperson for Walker, who has still not formally announced his 2016 campaign, did not immediately return a request for comment from Business Insider.

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