Surveys of voters in West Virginia show that the vast majority of voters across a broad spectrum of both parties are in favor of the measures in the Senate that Joe Manchin opposes.

This begs the question, “Who is Joe Manchin representing?” He was elected to a state-wide office. And the majority of his constituents including a majority from the opposition party want to see S 1, the Senate version of HR 1, the “For the People Act” and the John Lewis Voting Rights Act passed.

According to CNBC, the Koch network is directly pressuring Manchin to oppose these very popular measures.

The political advocacy group backed by billionaire Charles Koch has been pressuring Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., to oppose key parts of the Democratic agenda, including filibuster reform and voting rights legislation.

That lobbying effort appears to be paying off. Manchin, in a recent op-ed, wrote that he opposed eliminating the filibuster and that he would not vote for the For the People Act, which, advocates say, would limit the influence of big donors on elections.

The bottom line is that the Koch network and other dark money groups are desperate to keep their inordinate share of power over the American political environment. The bills that they vehemently oppose will result in directly curtailing their influence.

A truly representative government that derives its authority from the people and not from the largest wallet is a really scary thing to these folks and they are spending massive sums to keep their status quo.

Use the lessons we are being presented here. The Koch Network and it’s allies want to substitute dollars for voters. When you see a politician opposing measures that are widely popular, look for the money. It is always there.

A joke I saw on Twitter today was on-point and scary at the same time, “The Koch brothers still own a lot of real estate, but their best investment may be the Manchin they bought in West Virginia.”