Yes because "oil tycoons" are clearly the only wealthy people in this country.

Might it be that you can't rely on private funding for things that don't result in a profit?

And that there's some disincentive for wealthy people to go against the current administration's policies?

Wealthy people fund all sorts of non-profitable things, ie. non-profits, charities, philanthropic initiatives, etc.

Look at Bill Gate's philanthropy over the years. There's thousands of others, including all of the Hollywood Celebrities that like to crow about the climate so much.

The NCAR was spending less than $150MM per year - it's not some outrageous amount of money for donors to fund.