Billionaire political contributor David Koch told ABC's Barbara Walters he is a fiscal conservative and social liberal, but gives to Republicans because he believes a balanced budget is vital to America's survival.
"I'm basically a libertarian," Koch told Walters in an interview for her special "10 Most Fascinating People" set to air Sunday at 9 p.m. Eastern. A portion of her interview with Koch aired Sunday morning on
"This Week."
Walters noted that Koch supports gay rights and abortion rights, but many of the candidates he supports don't share those views.
"Well, that's their problem," Koch said.
He is focused on candidates who support a balanced budget, he said, because otherwise, inflation could hurt the economy.
"If those go bad, the country as a whole suffers terribly," he said.
Koch admitted he has political influence because of his donations, but said he follows the law in campaign spending limits.
After watching the segment, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich told the political panel he was surprised to see Walters asking Koch about his political influence.
"To have Barbara Walters suggest that David Koch has a lot of influence … I'd like to know the value of Barbara Walters' opinion over her career on television — unpaid for," he said.
"You talk about politics and money, about the power that you guys have?"added Ginrich. "Because what Koch represents is an effort by conservatives to offset the elite media."