One of the great misconceptions in American politics is that Republicans are the party of the rich.  That title belongs to the Democrats, who regularly garner the big bucks of America’s moneyed elite.  David Elliott of the AP reports:

For as often as Democrats attack the conservative billionaires Charles and David Koch for their heavy spending on politics, it's actually the liberal-minded who shelled out the most cash in the just completed midterm elections.

At least, that is, among those groups that must disclose what they raise and spend.

Among the top 100 individual donors to political groups, more than half gave primarily to Democrats or their allies. Among groups that funneled more than $100,000 to allies, the top of the list tilted overwhelmingly toward Democrats — a group favoring the GOP doesn't appear on the list until No. 14.

The two biggest super PACs of 2014? Senate Majority PAC and House Majority PAC — both backing Democrats.

In all, the top 10 individual donors to outside groups injected almost $128 million into this year's elections. Democratic-leaning groups collected $91 million of it.

Among the 183 groups that wrote checks of $100,000 or more to another group, Democrats had a 3-to-1 cash advantage. The biggest player was the National Education Association, at $22 million. Not a single Republican-leaning group cracked the top 10 list of those transferring money to others.

Overall, for the campaign season that just ended, donors who gave more than $1 million sent roughly 60 cents of every dollar to liberal groups. Among the 10 biggest donors, Democrats outspent Republicans by an almost 3-to-1 margin.

There are a number of reasons why the rich tend to support the Democrats.  One is the protection racket.  Democrats are the party that demagogues class warfare rhetoric.  Supporting them buys a degree of immunity.  The left’s dominance of cultural institutions means that social prestige as well as political benefit flows in the direction of those who “fight the good fight” (as the left sees it) by supporting the Democrats.  Although the Koch brothers lavishly support various cultural institutions, their support for conservative/libertarian causes has made their names anathema in much of the cultural and media establishment.

The Democrats are also the party of Big Government, and the mega-rich often fnd themselves in a position to benefit from BG programs.  A little subsidy here, a loan guarantee there, tax breaks for following the will of the social engineers – it all adds up.

By supporting the political party of the left, some people feel redeemed for their greed, misdeeds, and lack of personal consideration for those with less.  They are hailed as saviors of the oppressed, and if they treat those same people with condescension or worse, why, it is all washed away by their support for the “enlightened” policies of the left, which offer succor to the oppressed.

As for the big organizations that overwhelmingly support the Democrats, look to the favors BG offers them.

The GOP is the party of the middle class and small business.  Demcorats are the party of the the rich and the poor.