Rob Portman’s record of pushing the Koch brothers’ self-enriching agenda has not only hurt Ohio’s middle class and working families but has become a major political liability for him and his reelection campaign.
Today, a new Senate Majority PAC poll in Ohio reveals that to know the Koch brothers is to dislike them:
“We also asked Ohio voters in the survey about the Koch brothers to see if voters are aware of these out-of-state billionaires who have flooded Ohio airwaves. The results suggest that while voters’ awareness of the Koch brothers is just beginning to grow, voters who are familiar with the Koch brothers do not approve of their deceptive attacks or self-serving agenda: 36% of Ohio voters are familiar with the Koch brothers, with 3 to 1 saying they feel unfavorably toward them. Portman’s reliable support for the Koch agenda in Washington will end up being a liability for him as voters learn more about the Koch brothers’ agenda”
What exactly does that agenda mean for Ohio? Already Koch Industries has endangered the health of Ohio families with its plants that contaminate the state’s air and drinking water. In fact, Koch-owned Georgia Pacific’s plant in Columbus was the target of a city-wide citizen campaign over its use of an unlined “toxic waste pit.” The pit, located near a number of residential areas, has been used by the GP plant to dump its wastewater for over a decade. The campaign calling for the pit to be closed or replaced included letters and pictures drawn by school children depicting the Georgia Pacific plant belching pollution clouds and flames. Despite this, Georgia Pacific has consistently ignored residents’ concerns, and the plant has continued to violate safety and health procedures, earning a citation from OSHA as recently as January 2015 for 11 “serious chemical safety violations.”
Sadly that’s just the tip of the iceberg. And when Ohioans learn more about the Kochs and their self-enriching agenda, things will only get worse for the Kochs and their puppet candidates. Bridge Project’s “O-H-I-O Koch! Koch! Koch!” report takes a deeper dive and uncovered even more disturbing information; as Koch companies have polluted Ohio’s air and water, Koch political groups have advocated against environmental safeguards, worker protections, access to health care, clean energy, and other policies that hurt Ohio’s people, environment, and economy.
Time and time again, the Kochs have hurt Ohio. And as polling shows, Portman’s support for the Koch agenda will prove to be a liability with voters next year.
Already this year, the Koch brothers have spent $1.4 million to prop up Portman to reward him for advocating for the Koch-promoted pro-outsourcing agenda. But as the new poll reveals, “the Kochs’ attempts to influence Ohio voters has been ineffective.”
The Kochs are doing everything they can to ensure that Rob Portman gets reelected because they can’t afford to lose those who do their bidding in the U.S. Senate. But unfortunately for Portman, his allegiance to the Kochs has hurt Ohio families and hurt his poll numbers. Needless to say, Rob Portman won’t be saying “Thank you” to Charles and David Koch again come November 2016.