The Kochs’ PR team needs to keep Charles off TV. They shouldn’t need the brothers’ in-house spy agency to tell them that.
It’s a major setback to the Kochs’ grand PR strategy any time the Koch Industries chairman and CEO is interviewed, because Charles seemingly can’t help but come clean about his and his David’s selfish agenda and shameless willingness to buy elections. Last weekend, a Fox Sunday Morning Futures interview provided Charles his latest opportunity to spill the beans:
- First off, Charles decided to come clean on the Koch plan to restrict future seniors’ Social Security eligibility by raising the retirement age. Hardly a burden on him, an 80 year-old who, with a net-worth of $44.2 billion, is the fifth-richest person in America.
- Then Charles doubled down on last week’s confession that he thinks “the more money, [in politics] the better.” On Sunday, Charles re-upped his absurd claim that the $900 million he plans to deploy in 2016 is all in the name of getting money out of politics — which just doesn’t make sense given that he and his brother are spending to elect candidates who oppose campaign finance reform.
- As a bonus, Charles — not for the first time — let the GOP field know he’s looking for a presidential candidate in the vein of British Prime Minister William Gladstone — a Confederate States of America-sympathizer whose family owned £83m-worth slaves. Make what you will of that one.
It’s refreshing that Charles Koch, whose network of front groups spend millions launching disingenuous attacks against Democrats, would be so candid about his plans to attack American seniors and his personal philosophy of wanting even more money in politics — but it isn’t doing the brothers’ public image any favors. Nor is it good news for the candidates they hopes to push into office in 2016.