The Koch brothers are everywhere, and it turns out that Herman Cain, the current Republican front-runner with the simple 9-9-9 tax plan, has been extensively wrapped in the slimy arms of the Kochtopus.

Cain's 9-9-9 plan, for instance, didn't come from Sim City (not directly at least). Instead, a businessman who served on the board of the Koch brothers’ Americans for Prosperity helped him come up with it. Cain’s campaign manager and members of his staff have also worked for AFP in the past. His campaign's law firm is representing AFP in an unrelated matter.

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Cain himself worked with AFP in 2005 and 2006, when he went around the country and spoke with activists starting local AFP chapters. He'll be at the AFP's Defending the American Dream summit next month and is the only presidential candidate scheduled to appear.

Among other political projects, the Koch family has funded climate denying scientists and anti-clean energy projects for years. We’re betting that coincidentally matches right up with Cain’s position on climate change and the EPA.

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