Real Koch Facts: Iowa

BREAKING: Newly Released Evidence Shows Kochs Back Candidates Who Share Their Extreme, Self-Serving Agenda

August 27, 2014

What do Joni Ernst, Tom Cotton, Cory Gardner, and Mitch McConnell all have in common? They all share key aspects of the Kochs’ extreme, self-serving, anti-working families agenda.

New reporting tonight by The Nation and Huffington Post on audio from a secretive Koch donor conference – where Ernst, Gardner, Cotton, and McConnell all spoke – demonstrates these candidates’ gratitude for the Kochs’ support, and the extent to which they share the extreme Koch agenda.

Whether opposing an increase in the minimum wage (or opposing a federal minimum wage entirely), supporting efforts that would voucherize Medicare, opposing legislative attempts to remedy pay discrimination, or opposing (even “philosophically”) policies that would directly assist those they seek to serve (e.g., the Farm Bill in Arkansas and Renewable Fuel Standards in Iowa), Koch-backed candidates are putting their Koch-backed agenda first above all else.

Supporting research after the jump.

Joni Ernst and Terri Lynn Land: Fighting for Small Businesses Like Koch Industries

August 20, 2014

Yesterday, Iowa Republican Joni Ernst announced that she was “proud” to receive the endorsement of the National Federal of Independent Business (NFIB) for her candidacy for U.S. Senate. Michigan Republican Terri Lynn Land was similarly flattered when she received NFIB’s endorsement last month (oh, except for that time she walked away from a question about it). Either way, one thing should be clear: NFIB is not about small business, it’s about the Kochs.

NFIB received more money in 2012 from the billionaire Koch brothers’ Freedom Partners than it did any other source, and has now been shown to have close ties with ALEC, the advocacy group of choice for dozens of multinational corporations like ExxonMobil, AT&T and Altria. NFIB’s advocacy for tax cuts that benefit the wealthiest Americans, like the Koch brothers, is but one example of the group not having the interests […]

What do Joni Ernst, the Kochs and Glenn Beck have in common?

August 15, 2014

Ever the Koch brothers’ crony, Iowa candidate for Senate Joni Ernst is in lockstep with their radical agenda, advocating the Kochs’ stance on numerous issues, including opposition to an increased minimum wage and support for cutting Medicare’s guaranteed benefits. Turns out the Kochs and Ernst don’t just share the same extreme, out-of-touch policy positions, they also subscribe to the same obscure conspiracy theories.

Yahoo News has the scoop this week on Ernst’s repeated rants against Agenda 21, an anti-U.N. conspiracy theory favored by the likes of Glenn Beck. Agenda 21 is a voluntary community planning provision that has been on the books for decades, yet as MSNBC notes, it seems like Ernst has “given the fringe topic quite a bit of thought.” Indeed, according to the Yahoo report, Ernst has warned “that Agenda 21 could force Iowa farmers off their land, dictate […]

More Koch Money for Top Crony Joni Ernst

We recently introduced you to Koch-Crony Joni Ernst, and outlined how she’s in lockstep with the billionaires and their political outfit, Americans for Prosperity. Last week, The Hill reported that Charles Koch, his wife, son and daughter-in-law all gave the maximum contribution allowed by law to Ernst’s campaign last month, which the outlet deems “a sign of the Koch brothers’ particular interest in helping her campaign.”

Today brings yet another piece of evidence of the Kochs’ “particular interest” in supporting the extreme Republican nominee for Iowa’s open Senate seat, albeit a much less obvious one.

The Washington Post reports that Concerned Veterans for America has a new ad out today attacking Ernst’s Democratic opponent, which will air in a massive, million-dollar ad buy across the state. What’s not evident from the 30-second spot is that Concerned Veterans for America is actually a key part of the Koch network and its plan to spend $300 million influencing this fall’s elections. During the 2012 campaign cycle, Concerned Veterans from America received $2 million in funding from the Kochs’ mysterious dark money apparatus.

For her part, Joni Ernst has previously thanked AFP for running ads against her opponent and espouses a laundry list of Koch-approved policy positions, cementing her status as both a top Koch crony and beneficiary.

Koch-Crony Joni’s Cavalry Is Coming!

July 8, 2014

This weekend, the Des Moines Register reported on the Koch brothers’ Americans For Prosperity ramping up its operations in Iowa. Or as Joni Ernst would put it, YAY!!

Joni Ernst has already expressed her gratitude for the opportunity to attend a Koch seminar as well as to Americans for Prosperity for running attack ads against Bruce Braley. So how ever will she thank the Koch brothers for deploying their troops on the ground across the Hawkeye State? Well, she is starting by fighting for the same anti-middle class agenda.

Ernst and AFP have both supported cutting taxes for the wealthy and for corporations, shifting more of the tax burden to working families. They’ve both supported privatizing social security and slashing Medicare. Ernst has even come out against the existence of the federal minimum wage, putting her in lock-step with the Koch plan to eliminate it.

For Koch-Crony Joni and AFP, it’s ‘you scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours.’ And if they win, nobody has the backs of working families in Iowa.

Background after the jump.