Real Koch Facts

Koch Attack Dogs Jump To Defend Grassley’s SCOTUS Obstructionism

April 4, 2016

Over the weekend, Concerned Women for America (CWA) once again helped the ranks of right-wing Koch allies attacking the Democrats and pushing for strict obstructionism in the Supreme Court nomination fight. In an op-ed for the Sioux City Journal, CWA’s Iowa state director Tamara Scott argued in favor of Senator Chuck Grassley and Mitch McConnell’s refusal to do their jobs:

But President Obama has excelled in subverting and undercutting the other two branches of government. His most recent effort was a blatant threat to move without congressional approval on a host of issues by exercising unprecedented executive power.
…

That abuse of power has exasperated the judicial nominations process and makes it crucial for all Senate Republicans to follow in Sen. Grassley’s and Sen. McConnell’s footsteps.

CWA brands itself as “the nation’s largest public policy women’s organization,” but in reality, it’s just another Koch front group that lobbies for the billionaires’ special interests. After Sen. […]

Kochs Dump $23.4 Million into Wisconsin Politics

April 1, 2016

Though this weekend all eyes may be on Tuesday’s Wisconsin primary election, Wisconsin politics have been in the sights of the Koch brothers for some time.

From discovering a “rising star” in Gov. Scott Walker to their strong support for current Speaker of the U.S. House, Paul Ryan, Charles and David Koch have spent at least $23 million since 2010 buying their way into the Badger State to advance an agenda that is far from “Wisconsin nice.”

As governor, Scott Walker worked hard for his patrons, making teachers, social workers, and snow plow operators his Public Enemy #1. He slashed funding for senior centers, food banks, public schools, and universities, while at the same time gave tax breaks for the wealthiest and rewrote laws to help his corporate friends get off the hook. Walker was such a promising political investment for the Kochs that they had hoped to back him all the way to the White […]

New Report: The KOCHstone State

April 1, 2016

As top state conservatives gather in Harrisburg today and tomorrow for the Pennsylvania Conservative Leadership Conference, many of the speakers and attendees are featured in the Bridge Project’s new report, “The Kochstone State: How the Koch Brothers’ Growing Influence Is Hurting Pennsylvanians.” The report lays out how the Kochs fostered and orchestrated the current political environment with their copious campaign donations and funding a network of radical political groups to drive their extreme, self-serving agenda.

From the Kochs’ aggressive in-state lobbying to get taxpayer-paid subsidies for Georgia Pacific, to pressuring state leaders to try to block oil and gas regulations, while they enable and supply fracking companies that contaminate Pennsylvania’s air, drinking water, and farmlands, the Koch machine has disrupted health services, threatened school closures, while casting the most vulnerable Pennsylvania residents into the political maelstrom the Koch brothers created.

“This is what the Koch brothers do to serve their bottom line,” […]

“Libertarian” Koch Groups Mirror GOP Presidential Pack In Anti-Choice Extremism

March 31, 2016

As Republican presidential candidates battle to see who can stake out the most extreme anti-choice position (Spoiler: Donald Trump is the front-runner here with his call to “punish the woman“), the anti-choice, anti-women fervor is unsurprisingly reflected across the Koch network.

The Koch’s alignment with Donald Trump on choice was succinctly articulated today by Cato Institute senior fellow Ilya Shapiro. Not to be outdone by Trump, he took to Twitter to make his views on reproductive rights clear. While disingenuously masquerading as “libertarian” organizations focused on economic issues, anti-choice extremism is rampant throughout the Kochs’ groups

Concerned Women for America provides the most illuminating example of David and Charles opposition to choice. The Kochs have pumped millions of dollars into this group which seeks to “protect and promote Biblical values” and to “restore the family to its traditional purpose.” Concerned Women for America has accused Planned Parenthood of “promot[ing] deviant […]

Kochs Come Up Empty With Friedrichs, But Pledge To Fight On

March 31, 2016

In spite of the coordinated attacks by anti-worker forces, led by those in the Koch Network, public employees were handed a major–if temporary–victory with the Supreme Court’s 4-4 ruling in Friedrichs v. California Teachers Association.

The reaction from the Koch-world was predictably coordinated and unsurprisingly negative. The Cato Institute’s policy analyst Jason Bedrick denounced the ruling, claiming that the ruling preserved, “a system that violates the rights of workers and reduces the quality of children’s education.” Bedrick lamented that, “But for Justice Scalia’s untimely death, the Friedrichs plaintiffs would have won.”

It is no secret that the Kochs had a direct hand in getting the Friedrichs case to the High Court. Using their ‘dark money’ channels–Donors Capital Fund and Donor’s Trust–the Kochs have a long documented history of providing financial support to The Center for Individual Rights,the conservative D.C. law firm that represented the plaintiff.

Koch-backed groups lined up accordingly. The Cato Institute

Arizona To Be Koch Brothers’ Playground

March 30, 2016

Unlike other states where state legislatures are toughening up their campaign finance laws, Arizona is doing the exact opposite. Yesterday, the Arizona state legislature passed SB 1516–a bill that guts the state’s responsibility to track and regulate ‘dark money’ that could be hidden in 501(c)3 and 501(c)4 non-profits, redefines campaign contributions and its transfer between campaigns, and further clouds who and how campaign finance laws should be enforced.

The fight over the Arizona bill, which could be signed into law as early as this week, has pitted good government activists against deep-pocketed corporate donors and political groups underwritten by the billionaire industrialists Charles and David Koch. It also spotlights a growing national debate over secret political spending, which is on pace to hit record levels in 2016.

We’ve seen already the influence that tens of millions of “dark” money from the Koch brothers have waged in Arizona. Americans for Prosperity, […]

Kochs Investing In Their Down-Ballot Puppets To Preserve Legislative Influence

March 24, 2016

Sensing the threat Donald Trump’s candidacy poses to down-ballot Republicans, David and Charles Koch are renewing their focus on buying influence in Senate and House races. The Koch network is planning on directing their $900 million war chest to a spring offensive of ad campaigns targeting Democratic challengers and propping up Republican incumbents.

The Kochs motive for supporting legislative candidates is not based in altruism: they expect results. From Rob Portman’s support of policies that encouraged outsourcing and corporate inversions to Kelly Ayotte’s votes against increasing the minimum wage while voting to preserve tens of billions of dollars in tax breaks for big oil companies, The Koch’s politically corrupt quid pro quo requires unwavering support for their agenda in return for financial support.

The Kochs are investing heavily in their legislative insurance plan. No matter who wins the White House this November, the Kochs primary concern is protecting their hand-picked legislators as […]

Out Of Options, Koch-Backed Club For Growth Bets On Ted Cruz

March 24, 2016

Out of options, the Charles and David Koch-backed Club for Growth just endorsed settled for Ted Cruz. The Kochs have for months been agonizing over the reality that they can’t buy Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump’s loyalty with campaign contributions. Hoping that someone — anyone — other than Ted Cruz would emerge as a viable challenger, Charles and David have thus far held off from getting involved in the race. Now, it looks like they’re settling — and hoping that they can somehow get Cruz into the White House where he’ll be sure to advance their selfish agenda.

Club for Growth has over the last several years benefited from at least $1.9 million from Koch groups. The organization received $924,000 from the Koch-linked Center to Protect Patient Rights from 2009-2012. And Club for Growth benefited from a massive $1,000,000 contribution from Freedom Partners in 2014, alone. As far as 2015 Koch contributions to Club for Growth? We […]

The “Anti-Corporate Welfare” Kochs Receive Another $7.2 Million In Corporate Welfare

March 23, 2016

For years, the Koch brothers have disparaged corporate welfare while their own companies received millions in breaks. Recently, a Koch subsidiary announced that the brothers will receive another huge tax break (AKA corporate welfare) for remodeling its headquarters.

On Thursday, Georgia Pacific announced a full renovation of its Atlanta branch. According to the Atlanta Journal Constitution, “The renovation is expected to cost about $150 million, and the board of the agency approved an incentive package involving $7.2 million in property tax breaks for the building over the next 10 years.”

This is hardly the first time that Georgia Pacific has padded the billionaires’ pockets through tax breaks.

Between 2012 and 2014, Georgia Pacific received $11.5 million in Arkansas through the state’s InvestArk tax credit program. Last year, GP’s Brewton, Alabama mill was awarded $347.7 million. The Brewton Standard reports, “The Georgia-Pacific Brewton LLC tax abatement was granted for $347.7 million for the […]

Kochs Spend Big To Promote Their Agenda At Ball State University

March 18, 2016

“The reason I explain this all is to highlight a key point — the Koch Brothers are known for making large donations when they want something” — Levi Todd, for the Ball State Daily

The Koch brothers are once again trying to buy influence and push their selfish agenda on college campuses. This time it’s Ball State University. In the past, we’ve covered Koch campus infiltration and curriculum interference at the University of Wisconsin, University of Maryland, and Utah State University, Indiana University, and Florida State University.

Despite outcry from students at Indiana University, the Kochs are back for more in the Hoosier State. The Charles Koch Foundation just joined up with “Papa John” Schnatter to send Muncie, Indiana’s Ball State University a combined $3.25 million, earmarked for the “John H. Schnatter Institute for Entrepreneurship and Free Enterprise.”

A recent report from the Ball State Daily News suggests that the terms of the grant agreement […]