Real Koch Facts

Kochs’ AFP TABOR Petition Will Hurt Colorado

January 7, 2016

In Colorado, the Kochs’ political longarm is yet again pushing their agenda that is good for the Kochs but bad for everyday Coloradans.

More than happy to sacrifice funding for essential programs like public education and health care if it means a smaller government, the Americans for Prosperity’s Colorado chapter is on the attack against Governor Hickenlooper’s proposed budget that projects increased revenues.

In 1992, Colorado passed the Taypayer Bill of Rights (TABOR) — a program that the Kochs and far right have loved for years. TABOR includes a provision that says that “state and local governments cannot … spend revenue collected under existing tax rates if revenues grow faster than the rate of inflation and population growth, without voter approval.”

The TABOR law has caused issues for state budgeting in the past. Impacted by the recession and wildfires, voters approved a temporary change in 2005 to the law that suspended the revenue […]

The Kochs Just Got A Seat On The Arizona Supreme Court

January 7, 2016

Arizona Governor Doug Ducey just appointed a Koch agenda advocate to the state’s Supreme Court: Clint Bolick, co-founder of the Koch-supported Institute for Justice and a litigator at the Koch-supported Goldwater Institute. Ducey is a big fan of the Kochs in his own right — the guy even hired a Koch operative as his first chief of staff — so it comes as no surprise that he’s looking to assist the Kochs in their Arizona takeover.

Bolick’s organization, the Institute for Justice, has benefited from “generous” Koch funding over the years — and it’s dutifully propped up the two brothers’ selfish agenda in return, including:

Leading an Arizona Supreme Court case to force “candidates out of public financing and back into the money machine of private donors” like the Kochs. (Putting Bolick right on the Court cuts out the middle man.)
Pushing an anti-regulations agenda; and,
Defending school choice legislation.

Charles and David Koch just got a great deal […]

Kochs’ Latino Front Group Defends Koch/Hedge Fund Interests In Puerto Rico

January 7, 2016

This week, the Kochs’ Latino front group, the LIBRE Initiative, became the latest Koch affiliate to step up and defend the Koch network’s interest in blocking fair access to Chapter 9 bankruptcy protections for Puerto Rico.

In a statement, Daniel Garza, the head of the Kochs’ Latino front group, toed the Koch line on Puerto Rico:

Puerto Rico’s financial crisis is largely due to a combination of cronyism, reckless government spending, and harmful federal policies. Any quick fix, including federal bailouts, will not solve the underlying problem. It needs to be addressed at the root, starting with the Puerto Rican government making tough choices – even at the risk of political repercussions.

Various options have been set forth to address the crisis, and Congress must consider this question carefully – including moral hazard and the precedent that may be set. The U.S. territory can rise above its financial crisis, but it will come […]

A Very Merry Kochmas For The Far Right & GOP

December 23, 2015

A slew of national, state, and local groups on the far right are looking forward to a very Merry Kochmas this year. While 2015 is winding down, we just learned of the multi-million dollar presents that Charles and David Koch gave to extreme, right wing groups in the 2014 election.

From Americans for Prosperity to the NRA, Daily Caller News Foundation, and more, the Kochs funneled millions to groups across the far-right that back their agenda and help elect their candidates. And don’t be fooled, Charles Koch does “expect something in return” from the candidates he backs as well as the groups he pours millions into.

Unfortunately, because the Kochs try to hide who they give their millions to, it will be a mystery who the Kochs are bankrolling to the tune of a promised nearly $900 million in the 2016 elections until Christmas 2017!

Looking for a few more cash stocking stuffers given out by Charles and […]

Why Did Rubio Back Off Giving Puerto Rico Fair Access To Chapter 9 Bankruptcy?

December 21, 2015

The New York Times this weekend reported on the billion-dollar hedge fund and Koch brothers-led lobbying campaign to prevent Puerto Rico from receiving fair access to Chapter 9 bankruptcy. Included in the story was a detail on Marco Rubio’s abandonment of legislation that would’ve given Puerto Rico fair treatment under the law — by the sound of it, he just walked away.

Rubio came out publicly against fair access for Puerto Rico back in September, but this weekend’s Times story got the Tampa Bay Times — and us — wondering: “Why did Marco Rubio back away from the bill to help Puerto Rico?”

It’s safe to say that his hedge fund backers and Charles and David Koch have something to do with it.

Rob Portman Gets Early Christmas Gift From The Kochs

December 21, 2015

Christmas came early for Senator Rob Portman this year. Facing a contentious re-election race, the Kochs sent one of their favorite Ohio cronies a $2,000 check in late November, bringing his career total to $10,000. And that’s not the only Koch cash that Portman’s been on the receiving end of — the Kochs’ political front group AFP has already spent upwards of $1.4 million on ads propping up Portman.

Like any good puppet, Portman has repeatedly put the Kochs ahead of his constituents’ best interests, even effectively voting against incentives to bring outsourced jobs home. In the last couple of weeks, the senator has voted against funding for crucial substance abuse treatment as well as tax credits for the poor.

Portman’s unwavering support of the Kochs’ corporate agenda has helped the senator win the backing of the brothers. Earlier this year, he thanked and praised the billionaires as the keynote […]

“It’s A Big Victory”: Kochs Win On Omnibus

December 18, 2015

“It’s a big victory.” That’s Americans for Prosperity President Tim Phillips’s assessment of the omnibus budget legislation that lifts the oil export ban and delivers a number of other big wins for Charles and David Koch.

The $1.1-trillion budget deal is chock-full of Koch agenda items, dutifully packed in by their bought-and-paid-for Koch candidates and shepherded through by their speaker of the House, Paul Ryan. The biggest win for Charles and David is the bill’s provision to lift the oil export ban — something the two billionaires have spent the last forty years lobbying for. Yes, since 1975. And despite what they’ve claimed over the years, it was not a selfless, ideological campaign. One of their employees admitted just this week that lifting the ban would be good for their business.

Other omnibus gifts for the Kochs include:

An EPA budget freeze. (More pollution, less oversight.)
A provision blocking new political spending disclosure requirements. (This […]

Don’t Be Fooled. The Kochs Won’t Give Up On Getting Their Corporate Execs Off The Hook.

December 16, 2015

As we wrote last week, the Koch brothers’ campaign for criminal justice reform is an entirely selfish endeavor. Their efforts to “ban the box” aren’t about helping reformed criminals find work; they’re about hiding their company’s long rap sheet of environmental and workplace violations.

But as negotiations on criminal justice reform continue, it appears the brothers are in a giving mood. Or at least that’s what Koch lawyer Mark Holden wants us to believe.

According to NBC News, the Kochs are willing to compromise when it come to their proposal to change mens rea, or criminal intent laws:

One issue that has threatened to derail progress on criminal justice reform: mens rea, which is that a person’s intention when committing a crime is taken into account during sentencing. The Koch brothers and conservative groups say mens rea has disappeared from criminal proceedings and want it reinstated.

Holden says he “reiterated” the position that […]

The Adelsons Are In The House, But Tonight Will Be A Koch Show

December 16, 2015

Tonight’s GOP-candidates-sucking-up-to-donors narrative will center on the GOP field’s efforts to woo GOP mega-donor and Venetian hotel owner Sheldon Adelson. It makes sense: It’s Adelson’s home turf and he’ll be right there in the audience. And there’s no question the various candidates — Marco Rubio, in particular — are very much trying to win his favor.

But each and every candidate is equally — probably more so — eager to win Charles and David Koch’s backing — and they’ll be doing their best to show the billionaire brothers that they deserve their network’s $900 million support.

Or every candidate but one, that is. Donald Trump — the guy whose very appeal among voters rests in the fact that “he can’t be bought” — is the one candidate who won’t be up there pandering to Adelson and the Kochs tonight. Trump’s candidacy and absolute dominance is keeping Charles and David up at night, because they know they can’t pressure […]

GOP Field Aren’t The Only Ones Betting On Nevada: Koch Rush In The Silver State

December 15, 2015

There’s a lot at stake tonight for the eight Republicans at the main stage debate in Las Vegas, but they aren’t the only ones betting on a good showing in Nevada. The Koch brothers are also upping the ante in the Silver State. The billionaire brothers have long appeared to have money to burn, and what better place to strike it rich (again) than the home of Las Vegas? After all, the Kochs were never going to sit back and let Sheldon Adelson have all the fun — it’s not in their nature.

Earlier this year, Bridge Project released a report on the Kochs’ efforts to gain political control of Nevada entitled, “Koch Rush In The Silver State.” The combined draw of natural resources and favorable tax policies brought Koch Industries to the state. Using their massive wealth, the brothers are doing everything they can to rig Nevada in their favor:

Expanding Their Political […]