Say what you will about billionaires (after all, Harry Reid does), but there’s often a huge gap between their contributions…some donate to the future, and others to themselves.

The Koch Brothers just donated $25 million to the United Negro College Fund. Tom Steyer set up a $2 million fund for victims of climate change ‘extreme weather events’.

First – there’s a big difference between ‘donating’ and ‘setting up a fund’. The former means ‘giving’, and the latter means ‘keeping’…until they decide ‘giving’ is warranted.

Then there’s the ‘return’ factor – providing merit awards to undergraduate and graduate students without obligation (to Charles and David Koch) stands as its own reward…

…they gave to a college funding program, whose managers decide its distribution.

Whereas, for Steyer (heavily invested in green energy), his climate-change fund is all about, well, climate change…which, obviously, screams ‘return-on-investment.’

And the only beneficiaries of said fund are obliged to believe in – yup – climate change.

Those who sneer and say the Koch Brothers improve their image by donating, are free to do so, but isn’t that what ‘philanthropy’ does? Didn’t Steyer have that opportunity?

At least, the Kochs burnished their image…Steyer burnished his green-energy portfolio.

Besides…

…would it be ungracious to note $2 million wouldn’t pay for bathroom fixtures if just one of San Fran-based Steyer’s glitzy neighbors was hit by a ‘climate-change’ wildfire…

…compared to the 3,000 kids getting Koch Brothers scholarships?

No amount of snide remarks changes the equation…

Once again, Liberals donate to themselves…and Libertarians donate to the future.