[marcusverus]

> The Moonies have woven themselves into the American right wing for decades. Reagan said the Washington Times, which is an organ of the Unification Church, was his favorite newspaper.

This is perhaps the flimsiest syllogism I have ever encountered.

[throwaway128128]

If you want more context[0], here's more:

But if you don't want to follow a link, here's a quote: Over the years, Moon’s hidden money has helped many Republicans through hard times. In the 1980s, the American Freedom Council defended North against Iran-Contra charges and distributed 30 million pieces of political literature to help elect George Bush in 1988. It was later revealed that the AFC was backed by $5 million to $6 million from business interests associated with Moon.

Moon’s organization also kept the right’s direct-mail guru Richard Viguerie afloat in the 1980s. At one stage, Viguerie profited from a big contract with the Washington Times for subscription solicitations, then, while facing a financial crisis that threatened his company’s future, Viguerie sold a building to a top Moon aide, Bo Hi Pak, for $10 million.

Yet, even as Moon has gained influence in GOP circles, the sources of his money have always been suspect. In the late 1970s, a congressional investigation tied Moon’s Unification Church to the “Koreagate” influence-buying scheme directed by South Korea’s intelligence service, the KCIA, against U.S. institutions. In 1983, the moderate Republican Ripon Society raised warning flags, too. Rep. Jim Leach (R-Iowa), then Ripon chairman, charged that Moon’s church had “infiltrated the new right and the party it [the new right] wants to control, the Republican Party, and infiltrated the media as well.”

But President Ronald Reagan embraced the Washington Times as his “favorite” newspaper and Moon’s newspaper returned the favor by defending the Reagan-Bush administrations at nearly every turn. In 1991, President Bush invited the paper’s new editor-in-chief, Wesley Pruden, to lunch “just to tell you how valuable the Times has become in Washington, where we read it every day.”

[0] https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-nov-16-op-54375...

[marcusverus]

Yikes. This is truly tin foil hat stuff.

> Over the years, Moon’s hidden money has helped many Republicans through hard times.

Okay. You offer three examples. One is obvious nonsense--Bush won by 8% in '88, winning 4/5 states. Supporting him was hardly "helping Republicans through hard times" and said support presumably went unnoticed, as support in a presidential campaign has the lowest value-per-dollar of any form of political support.

Given that, your entire argument is

> Moon --has money in--> "business interests associated with moon" --give money to--> AFC --does business with--> Richard Viguerie --supports--> GOP

Ergo, Moon has influence over the GOP? Lol. Then there's:

> Moon --has money in--> "business interests associated with moon" --give money to--> AFC --toes party line during Iran-Contra in support of--> GOP

Ergo, Moon has influence over the GOP. One cannot possibly be convinced of this without first desperately wanting to be convinced. Maybe it hits better if you've got the whole thing pinned up on your wall with thumbtacks, with the relationships mapped out in red yarn and a tin foil hat to keep the 5G at bay.

Look--giving money to a cause while separated by multiple parties is the flimsiest form of association imaginable. Pretending that this relationship (if you can even call it that) is necessarily reversible (A gives to B, who gives to C, who helps D, ergo D is under the influence of A) is just laughable. It's worth noting separately that this whole rhetorical house of cards rests on the assumption that "business interests associated with moon" means "Moon's money", which is likely just another batch of motivated reasoning.

> In the late 1970s, a congressional investigation tied Moon’s Unification Church to the “Koreagate” influence-buying scheme directed by South Korea’s intelligence service, the KCIA, against U.S. institutions.

Are you going to tie this in? Or are you hoping for a leap of faith?

> In 1983, the moderate Republican Ripon Society raised warning flags, too. Rep. Jim Leach (R-Iowa), then Ripon chairman, charged that Moon’s church had “infiltrated the new right and the party it [the new right] wants to control, the Republican Party, and infiltrated the media as well.”

Imagine quoting a politician as evidence.

> But President Ronald Reagan embraced the Washington Times as his “favorite” newspaper and Moon’s newspaper returned the favor by defending the Reagan-Bush administrations at nearly every turn.

One can appreciate a paper for providing good press coverage without drinking the kool-aid of the owner's cult. Don't you agree?

> In 1991, President Bush invited the paper’s new editor-in-chief, Wesley Pruden, to lunch “just to tell you how valuable the Times has become in Washington, where we read it every day.”

This could be the sole piece of evidence of an super-secret back channel between Bush and the Moon cult<-->Korean intelligence axis! Or it could be a conservative politician showing appreciation to a conservative news outlet for their positive coverage of the administration--doubtless one of many such lunches. Occam's Razor applies.