An inspiration to all participation award recipients everywhere, Marco Rubio — who, remember, has yet to win a single state and won a mere 9 delegates to Donald Trump’s 68 — is teaming up with Charles and David Koch to bring their selfish agenda to the White House.
In the latest sign that the Kochs — like RNC Reince Priebus and the rest of the GOP establishment — are getting seriously nervous about Donald Trump, Politico reports that Marc Short, “the Koch brothers’ top political adviser in Washington and a trusted member of their inner circle for five years,” is jumping aboard Marco Rubio’s expectations-mangling presidential campaign.
Short’s Team Marco migration is a serious indication that Rubio’s surging ahead in the Koch Primary. But that’s hardly a surprise — there have for months been indications that Rubio’s a Koch favorite.
In the last weeks alone, we’ve seen Koch operatives jump to Rubio’s defense on social media, as well as reports that representatives from Conservative Solutions PAC, a pro-Rubio super PAC, met with Koch network donors at the two brothers’ winter conference.
And Rubio has, for his part, worked to prove that he’d be a worthwhile investment for the Kochs. Rubio notably switched his position on giving Puerto Rico fair access to Chapter 9 bankruptcy back in December, and he continues to support Koch-friendly policies with respect to earned benefits and taxes, as well as with his opposition to the Export-Import Bank.
Like the Republican establishment, Charles and David Koch are increasingly worried about Donald Trump — the one candidate the can’t control with their money — so they’re betting on Marco Rubio, a candidate they can count on to promote their selfish agenda.
Rubio And The Koch Brothers
Koch Primary
Headline: “Marco Rubio: I Would Love To Win Support From The Koch Brothers In 2016.” [Washington Times, 4/23/15]
The Kochs “Identified Five Candidates Who Have The Right Message And ‘A Good Chance Of Getting Elected’”: Scott Walker, Jeb Bush, Ted Cruz, Rand Paul, And Marco Rubio. According to USA Today, “[Charles] Koch, his brother David and their team have identified five candidates who have the right message and ‘a good chance of getting elected,’ he told USA TODAY in an exclusive interview at Koch Industries’ headquarters. They are Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, former Florida governor Jeb Bush and Sens. Ted Cruz of Texas, Rand Paul of Kentucky and Marco Rubio of Florida.” [USA Today, 4/21/15]
CNN: “Marco Rubio Courted New Hampshire Voters Allied With Two Powerful Organizations At The Center Of The Koch Brothers’ Sprawling Political Network During Campaign Events On Thursday.” According to CNN, “Marco Rubio courted New Hampshire voters allied with two powerful organizations at the center of the Koch Brothers’ sprawling political network during campaign events on Thursday.” [CNN, 6/25/15]
Rubio Defended His Events, Saying “People Buy Into My Agenda, I Don’t Buy Into Theirs… My Stands Are Not Influenced By My Contributors, I Hope My Stands Influences My Contributors.” According to CNN, “‘People buy into my agenda, I don’t buy into theirs,’ [Marco] Rubio told reporters in Exeter after appearing at the Concerned Veterans for America event. ‘My stands are not influenced by my contributors, I hope my stands influences my contributors.’” [CNN, 6/25/15]
AFP CEO Luke Hilgemann Praised Marco Rubio As “Strong” For Rising Above Personal Attacks And Painting “His Vision For A Better, More Prosperous America.” According to a tweet by AFP CEO Luke Hilgemann, “Enough of the personal attacks. @senmarcorubio rises above it and paints his vision for a better, more prosperous America. #Strong[.]” [Luke Hilgemann – Twitter, 10/28/15]
Koch Industries Managing Director Of External Affairs Ken Spain Tweeted That He Would “Love” A Sen. Cory Gardner And Marco Rubio Ticket In 2016. According to a tweet by Ken Spain, “Love this. #RubioGardner #2016” Ken Spain subtweeted Rothenberg&Gonzales @InsideElections, “Cory Gardner for VP? @StuPolitics explores the possibility. http://fb.me/7E7UDNNH4” [Twitter, 11/6/15]
LIBRE Initiative Digital Manager Steven Cruz Congratulated Sen. Marco Rubio For A “Great Night” During The South Carolina Primary, And Said He Was “#TeamRubio.”According to a tweet by LIBRE Initiative digital manager Steven Cruz, “Congratulations on a great night @MarcoRubio! I’m ready for a #NewAmericanCentury. #Marcomentum #TeamMarco” [Steven Cruz – Twitter, 2/20/16]
Koch Events
The Koch Conference’s Final Speaker Was Sen. Marco Rubio, Who Gave The Closing Speech At The “Immigrant Experience” Dinner Instead Of The Gathering’s Usual Last Speaker, Charles Koch. According to The Nation, “On the last night of the Koch brothers’ secretive donor retreat in June, wealthy conservatives sat down to ‘The Immigrant Experience’ dinner, as it was dubbed internally. Usually Charles Koch delivers ‘the final battle cry,’ a Koch operative told the audience. But this year the closing speech was given by a special guest: Marco Rubio, the Republican Senator from Florida and prospective 2016 presidential candidate.” [Nation, 9/4/14]
CVA: “Senator Marco Rubio Has Been An Early And Outspoken Advocate Of Bringing Long-Overdue Accountability To The Department Of Veterans Affairs.” According to a press release from Concerned Veterans for America, “Senator Marco Rubio has been an early and outspoken advocate of bringing long-overdue accountability to the Department of Veterans Affairs and was the lead Senate sponsor for the VA Management Accountability Act in 2014, which served as the basis for many of the important reform and accountability provisions included in the final compromise bill the president enacted.” [Concerned Veterans for America Press Release, 2/11/15]
Sen. Marco Rubio Spoke At A Lunch Hosted By AFP, Where He “Voiced Strong Opposition To ‘Net Neutrality’ Laws.” According to The Washington Post’s Post Politics blog, “Later in the day, [Sen. Marco] Rubio spoke at lunch hosted by Americans for Prosperity, a conservative group backed by the billionaire industrialist Koch brothers. There, he voiced strong opposition to ‘net neutrality’ laws, which Republican politicians generally oppose.” [Post Politics via WashingtonPost.com, 5/1/15]
The Hill: Koch Donor Paul Singer “Held A Private Session” At The 2016 Palm Springs Koch Donor Retreat To Sell The Virtues Of Sen. Marco Rubio. According to The Hill, “Another Rubio mega-donor, – New York hedge fund billionaire Paul Singer – had been making headway at convincing donors to join the Rubio camp, before the disappointing debate and New Hampshire primary. Singer, who has given $2.5 million to Rubio’s super-PAC so far, held a private session at the Koch brothers’ donor retreat in Palm Springs earlier this month in a bid to sell Rubio’s virtues to other wealthy conservatives.” [The Hill, 2/12/16]
Koch Funding
Center For Responsive Politics: Koch Industries And Its Staff Collectively Were The Ninth-Largest Donor To Sen. Marco Rubio Between 2010 And February 2016, Contributing A Total Of $48,350. According to the Center for Responsive Politics, Koch Industries individuals and PACs donated a total of $48,350 to Sen. Marco Rubio as of February 23, 2016. Koch Industries was the ninth-largest total contributor. [Center for Responsive Politics, 2/23/16]
Koch-Aligned Donors Art Pope And Randy Kendrick Each Donated $250,000 To The Pro-Rubio Conservative Solutions PAC. According to USA Today, “The founder of Oracle donated $1 million to a pro-Rubio super PAC last month, newly filed election reports shows. That’s on top of the $3 million the tech magnate contributed to the group, Conservative Solutions PAC, last year. […] Other donors to the pro-Rubio super PAC in January included North Carolina discount retailer Art Pope, Richard DeVos, of the Michigan-based Amway fortune, and Randy Kendrick, whose husband co-owns Major League Baseball’s Arizona Diamondbacks. They donated $250,000 each. The January contributors to the super PAC underscore Rubio’s ability to straddle various lanes of the Republican donor class — ranging from a Silicon Valley tycoon who is one of the world’s richest people to figures such as Pope and Kendrick, who are aligned with libertarian-leaning industrialists Charles and David Koch.” [USA Today, 2/20/16]
Bill And Bridget Koch Announced That They Will Host A South Florida Fundraiser For Marco Rubio On January 10 That Will Ask For $1,000 Per Couple. According to Florida Politics, “Big-money backers of Marco Rubio, including billionaires Norman Braman and Bill Koch, will host a pair of South Florida fundraisers next month to support the Republican presidential candidate. The events will be the final Rubio fundraisers held in the Miami area before the Feb. 1 Iowa caucuses. Both events are scheduled Jan. 10. The first, a minimum $1,000 per couple afternoon reception, will be held at the home of Bridget and Bill Koch, 974 S. Ocean Blvd. in Palm Beach. Koch, founder of Oxbow Carbon, is probably better known for extended legal battles with his brothers, the conservative activists Charles and David Koch. According to the invitation, there’s a 4:30 p.m. VIP and photo reception, with a 5 p.m. general reception.” [Florida Politics, 12/23/15]
Billionaire AFP Donor Frank VanderSloot “Pledged Not Just To Support Rubio Heavily From His Own Pocket, But To Go ‘All Out’ In Bundling Money From Other Donors, As Well.” According to KRTV, “Idaho billionaire Frank VanderSloot announced Wednesday he would back the freshman senator after his team determined in a 10-month evaluation that Rubio would both make the best President and be the most electable in a general election. […] VanderSloot is the founder of health products company Melaleuca and has been a substantial Republican donor in the past. He was a national finance co-chairman for Mitt Romney’s 2008 and 2012 presidential campaigns, with his company donating more than $1 million to Romney’s super PAC and with VanderSloot bundling $58 million for the 2012 campaign. He has also been a heavy donor to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and leading conservative nonprofit groups Crossroads GPS and Americans for Prosperity. […] VanderSloot pledged not just to support Rubio heavily from his own pocket, but to go ‘all out’ in bundling money from other donors, as well. And he said he’s heard from many friends who originally supported former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush that they like Rubio but are waiting until farther into the primary cycle to get involved.” [Wall Street Journal, 11/18/15]
Minneapolis Star Tribune: Koch Donor Stanley Hubbard And His Wife Karen “Donated Relatively Small Sums Of Between $2,500 And $5,400 To Bush, Rubio, Ben Carson, Carly Fiorina And Chris Christie.” According to the Minneapolis Star Tribune, “After first betting on Walker, Hubbard and his wife, Karen, this year have donated relatively small sums of between $2,500 and $5,400 to Bush, Rubio, Ben Carson, Carly Fiorina and Chris Christie.” [Minneapolis Star Tribune, 12/6/15]
Koch Agenda
Freedom Partners Praised Gov. Jeb Bush, Sen. Ted Cruz, Sen. Rand Paul, and Sen. Marco Rubio For Their Opposition To Reauthorizing The Export-Import Bank. According to the Washington Times, “Freedom Partners Chamber of Commerce, a nonprofit group with ties to the billionaire philanthropists Charles and David Koch, applauded four potential GOP presidential contenders on Tuesday for supporting the end of the Export-Import Bank. ‘Former Governor Jeb Bush, Senator Ted Cruz, Senator Rand Paul and Senator Marco Rubio’s opposition to reauthorizing the Export-Import Bank is a clear sign that opposition to the bank extends from the grassroots all the way to some of the most prominent figures in national politics,’ Freedom Partners President Marc Short said in a statement.” [Washington Times,3/3/15]
Sen. Marco Rubio “Did Not Disagree With The Science Of Climate Change” But Insisted That The New Rules Would “Make The Cost Of Electricity High For Millions Of Americans.” According to The Hill, “Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) did not disagree with the science of climate change, but focused on how the new rules would hurt the economy. ‘It will make the cost of electricity high for millions of Americans,’ he said, adding that while a billionaire wouldn’t mind the increase in energy costs, a single mother would.” [The Hill, 8/3/15]
New York Times: “In Trying To Win The Support Of The Koch Brothers, Senators Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio, And Rand Paul Have Signed A Pledge…To ‘Oppose Any Legislation Relating To Climate Change’ That Would Involve Higher Taxes Or Fees.” According to the New York Times, “In trying to win the support of the Koch brothers, Senators Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio and Rand Paul have signed a pledge to do the bidding of the billionaire oil industrialists, promising to ‘oppose any legislation relating to climate change’ that would involve higher taxes or fees.” [New York Times, 11/5/15]
Rubio Questioned The Effectiveness Of President Obama’s Rules, Adding That Major Developing Countries Like China And India Will Still Emit Large Amounts Of Greenhouse Gases. According to The Hill, “Rubio also questioned the effectiveness of the rules, saying that major developing countries like China and India will still emit massive amounts of greenhouse gases. ‘The bottom line is that American energy will allow millions of people to improve their standard of living, just as it has eradicated poverty for millions of people around the world,’ he said.” [The Hill, 8/3/15]
Marco Rubio Released An Ad Spotlighting His 100% Ratings From AFP And FreedomWorks. According to The Hill, “Rubio’s latest campaign spot also touts glowing reviews he has received from a number of conservative organizations. It spotlights ‘100 percent’ rankings from the National Right to Life Committee, Americans for Prosperity and FreedomWorks. The ad also boasts about Rubio’s ‘98 percent’ from the American Conservative Union, his ‘97 percent’ from Club for Growth and his ‘96 percent’ from Heritage Action for America. Other plaudits include an ‘A’ rankings from the National Rifle Association and the National Taxpayers Union, as well as a ‘Taxpayer Superhero’ title from Citizens Against Government Waste.” [The Hill, 1/14/16]