The Kochs’ invisible primary took a few twists in the last 24 hours. After David Koch signaled his support for Scott Walker — nudging his vast finance network to fall in line — Koch political operatives are backtracking and assuring the public that auditions for the keys to Koch Kingdom are far from over. Even Jeb Bush will be invited to compete for $889 million the Kochs have promised to spend, which could now be spent in the primary. The Kochs are hedging their bets, though, with a crony telling Politico: “We wouldn’t want to take options off the table by getting behind one of them now,” since the Kochs are fiercely political and want to make sure they own whichever GOP nominee is competing for the White House.
If you believe David Koch’s blabber-mouthing yesterday, Scott Walker is leading the pack. “We will support whoever the candidate is,” said Mr. Koch, according to the NY Times. “But it should be Scott Walker.”
There is no better example of a bought-and-paid-for Koch chump than Walker. The Kochs have been working hand-in-hand with Walker to enact their extreme policies in Wisconsin. The Koch brothers’ political arm, Americans for Prosperity, spent heavily in Wisconsin in 2010 to elect Walker. And in turn, Walker immediately adopted the Koch’s agenda and gave the state of Wisconsin an ultra-conservative facelift:
- Gutting environmental protections
- Opposing an increase to the state’s minimum wage while giving massive tax breaks to the wealthy
- Working with the state’s Republican Legislature to dismantle collective bargaining rights that effectively cut public workers’ pay and destroyed their ability to negotiate over health coverage, safety, or sick leave
And when Walker thought a prank caller was David Koch, he was legitimately giddy to share strategy and make sure he was in the Kochs’ good graces. In turn, when Walker’s punishing policies forced a 2012 recall election, AFP spent $10 million propping up his — and the Kochs’ — political agenda. AFP was also there to push Walker’s 2014 re-election campaign with nearly $1 million in ads.
Now that Walker is running for the presidency, the Kochs see another opportunity to make sure their right-wing investment in Walker is sound. But don’t jump too quickly, since it looks like the Koch brothers are hedging their bets and making sure they stay relevant in their invisible primary and the GOP primary to come.
BRIDGE PROJECT: HOW CONSERVATIVES TOOK OVER WISCONSIN
The Koch Brothers Were Major Supporters Of Walker’s 2010 Campaign.
According to Mother Jones, “Wisconsin Republican Governor Scott Walker, whose bill to kill collective bargaining rights for public-sector unions has caused an uproar among state employees, might not be where he is today without the Koch brothers. […] According to Wisconsin campaign finance filings, Walker’s gubernatorial campaign received $43,000 from the Koch Industries PAC during the 2010 election. That donation was his campaign’s second-highest, behind $43,125 in contributions from housing and realtor groups in Wisconsin. The Koch’s PAC also helped Walker via a familiar and much-used politicial [sic] maneuver designed to allow donors to skirt campaign finance limits. The PAC gave $1 million to the Republican Governors Association, which in turn spent $65,000 on independent expenditures to support Walker. The RGA also spent a whopping $3.4 million on TV ads and mailers attacking Walker’s opponent, Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett.” [Mother Jones, 2/18/11]
Koch Industries PAC Contributed To 16 Winning Republicans State-Level Candidates In 2010.
According to Mother Jones, “The Kochs also assisted Walker’s current GOP allies in the fight against the public-sector unions. Last year, Republicans took control of the both houses of the Wisconsin state legislature, which has made Walker’s assault on these unions possible. And according to data from the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, the Koch Industries PAC spent $6,500 in support of 16 Wisconsin Republican state legislative candidates, who each won his or her election.” [Mother Jones, 2/18/11] Americans For Prosperity President Tim Phillips Said AFP Spent $10 Million Promoting Walker’s Policies In 2011-2012. According to the Capital Times, “In 2011 and 2012, AFP teamed up with the MacIver Institute, a conservative think-tank, on an ad campaign promoting Walker’s policies. The Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, an election watchdog group, estimated that the ads cost $3.7 million. AFP President Tim Philips told CNN that his group spent $10 million in 2011 and 2012 promoting Walker’s policies.” [The Capital Times, 1/15/14]
In 2011, AFP Organized A Bus Tour To “Support Responsible Economic Policies Like Governor Walker’s.”
According to Mother Jones, “Nor is this the first time AFP has bussed in supporters to show support for Walker and his agenda. The group’s ‘Stand Against Spending. Stand With Walker’ bus tour in March 2011 cruised across the state for four days to ‘take a firm stand against wasteful government spending and support responsible economic policies like Governor Walker’s,’ according to AFP’s Tim Phillips.” [Mother Jones, 5/28/12]
During 2011 Recall Elections, AFP Mailed Voters Absentee Ballots With The Wrong Date.
According to Politico, “The conservative third-party group Americans for Prosperity said absentee ballot applications sent to Wisconsin voters this weekend with the wrong election date were the result of a ‘printing mistake.’ ‘The date on the ballot application was meant solely for the elections held on Aug. 16. Due to a mistake during printing, all applications were sent out with the Aug. 11 date,’ said AFP-Wisconsin state Director Matt Seaholm. ‘Americans for Prosperity-Wisconsin did not intend to print the incorrect absentee deadline or confuse voters in any way.’ The fliers from the advocacy group informed voters they should return ballots to their city clerk before Aug. 11 — even though the next election day is Aug. 9. The upcoming recall elections of six Republican state senators could flip control of the state Senate, as Republicans currently hold just a 19-14 majority in the chamber.” [Politico, 8/2/11]
AFP Spent Over $1.5 Million On TV Ads During Walker Recall Election.
According to the Sunlight Foundation, “A limited picture of how much AFP is spending in the state comes from its TV buys. The Federal Communications Commission requires that local TV stations keep information about political ad spending in a public file. As of a month ago, when Gannett’s Wisconsin newspapers compiled data from the files, AFP had spent more than $1.5 million on ads in the state’s five biggest markets.” [Sunlight Foundation, 6/7/12]
Americans For Prosperity Launched Multi-City Wisconsin Bus Tour Days Head Of Walker Recall Election.
According to Mother Jones, “This week, the Wisconsin chapter of Americans for Prosperity, the conservative nonprofit with ties to Charles and David Koch, launches a four-day, 10- city bus tour to ‘highlight the successes we have had in Wisconsin and lay the ground work for the challenges to come.’ AFP’s ‘A Better Wisconsin’ tour hits the road just days before the state’s hugely anticipated gubernatorial recall pitting Gov. Scott Walker against Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett, as well as four state Senate recall elections that will decide who controls the Senate. AFP has promoted its tour to state and national media, and no less than AFP national president Tim Phillips will be on hand to rally Wisconsinites. Given the tour’s timing and billing, any reasonable person would view it as a statewide drive to get out the vote for Walker and his GOP allies in the June 5 election. Not AFP. AFP’s Wisconsin director, Luke Hilgemann, says the bus tour has nothing to do the recall elections. ‘We’re not dealing with any candidates, political parties, or ongoing races,’ Hilgemann told the Hudson, Wisconsin, Patch news site. ‘We’re just educating folks on the importance of the reforms.’” [Mother Jones, 5/28/12]