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crogin Profile
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Republicans rattled by Koch shift from Trump


https://www.aol.com/article/news/2018/08/02/republicans-rattled-by-koch-shift-from-trump/23494569/

emphasis added

quote:

NBC News
LEIGH ANN CALDWELL AND JONATHAN ALLEN
Aug 2nd 2018 8:47AM

WASHINGTON — Republicans in Washington are growing increasingly worried in the wake of a move by one of the GOP's biggest financial backers to break from President Donald Trump's agenda.

The decision by conservative Koch network to be more selective in supporting candidates that back their free-trade, small government policies, has spurred fear among GOP lawmakers that a major funding spigot will dry up and they worry that the growing spat is dividing the party ahead of the crucial midterm elections.

The network, which spends upwards of $400 million each election cycle on politics and policy, with a large percentage going to elect Republicans to Congress, announced last weekend that the group is scaling back its political support and "raising the bar" for a candidate to be endorsed.

That has rattled Republicans who have relied on Koch money to supplement their own campaign message and to be a reliable attack dog against their Democratic opponents.

Sen. David Perdue, R-Ga., said he's "very concerned" at the Koch's new posture this election cycle and beyond.

"We need all the help we can get right now because the left is very clear because the presidential candidate they're going to put up in 2020 is going to be very liberal," Perdue said.

But the Koch organization has grown frustrated with the GOP, which is transforming into a more protectionist, nationalist party under the leadership of President Trump — a shift that organization officials see as counter to their own agenda.

The Koch network and the president have split on the issues of tariffs and immigration and the group is attempting to pressure lawmakers to stay committed to traditional Republican ideals.

"There are honest disagreements within the GOP on some topics, tariffs and trade obviously being one of them. And the Koch's strong free market ideology doesn't fit well with the current set of policies being pushed by the White House," said Chris Wilson, director of research, analytics and digital strategy for the Ted Cruz presidential campaign.

The disagreement on trade, an issue central to both the president and the Koch network, has deepened a fissure in the party that already existed.

In a rare interview session with reporters Sunday, Charles Koch, the head of the organization, said he "regrets" having supported some Republicans in the past who "say they're going to be for these principles that we espoused and then they aren't." And he pledged to be more "selective" in supporting candidates going forward.

Trump took offense to the network's message, tweeting that they are "highly overrated" and that he has "beaten them at every turn."


On Thursday, the president continued the attacks, tweeting:

But as one Koch donor put it, each side is trying is protecting its ideals.

"I think Trump is saying, whose agenda are you supporting? And I think it's very much the same way for (the Kochs) in that they don't want anybody defecting on any issue," a donor who wished to remain anonymous said.

The rift has begun to impact this year's elections and the way the Koch organization has approached the North Dakota Senate race has caused deep frustration among Republicans.

In May, a Koch-associated group placed a small-dollar mailer ad "thanking" Democratic Sen. Heidi Heitkamp for voting to rollback banking regulations. And over the weekend, at their semiannual donor confab in Colorado Springs, the organization announced that it wouldn't support North Dakota Republican candidate Kevin Cramer because he has been "inconsistent" on key issues of government spending and corporate welfare.

Republican senators are reluctant to speak critically publicly, understanding Trump's high approval ratings among the base and worrying about exacerbating the divide.

"When you see ads for Heidi Heitkamp, that caused a little bit of a pause," said one Republican senator who said senators have been asking a lot of questions of each other about what the Koch network's plan is. "I think concerns have to do with fundraising more than anything else."

The organization told reporters that it is engaging in just four Senate races of candidates who fit their mold of backing free trade and a small government as of now, including in Florida, Missouri, Wisconsin and Tennessee. There was no mention of House races to reporters during the three-day seminar.

But two participants told NBC News that in closed-door sessions over the weekend, the organization laid out plans to get involved in ten House races and two additional Senate races — West Virginia and Ohio — bringing the total of Senate races to six.

But not on that list are some key states. North Dakota is considered to be atop the list of Republicans' best opportunities to win a Democratic seat, followed by Indiana, which the Koch network said they have no plans of getting involved at this stage of the race.

Also absent from the list is Nevada where incumbent GOP Sen. Dean Heller is trying to stave off his Democratic opponent and Arizona, where a three-way race for the primary is underway. But one participant said the Koch officials called the race "a mess" and have no intention of getting involved.

"Members of congress do need to know that we're raising the bar. What we would have accepted in the past — repeated votes to increase government spending, failure to lead at important moments such as when trade with the rest of the world is at stake," Americans for Prosperity President Tim Phillips said in a phone interview, "I think the rest of the country and the network is going to demand more."

Some Republicans argue that the Koch's more limited political engagement will have little impact.

"This disagreement is unlikely to hurt Republicans in the mid-terms as there are enough opportunities for the Koch network to back like-minded candidates while other groups and Super PACS can put their money into the races where the Koch's don't," Wilson said.

Rep. Mark Meadows, R-N.C., who has attended Koch seminar weekends in the past and has also become a staunch ally of the president's, said that the Koch's money is less relevant.

"In truth we're not going to solve the American people's problems with more money. We're going to solve it by being unified and working on the people's agenda between now and November," he said.

Not all lawmakers are concerned. Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., who attended the most recent Koch weekend, said that he thought the message was a positive one.

"I'm probably an outlier, but I thought it was a fairly positive message," Scott said. "It certainly is a tad bit of a paradigm shift that rightfully so is focusing on the issues more than anything else. They're prioritizing around the issues that they think will make America better."



---
Don't try to tell me the only way left is up.
There's always more down!

8/2/2018, 4:58 pm Link to this post PM crogin
 
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Re: Republicans rattled by Koch shift from Trump


What is with the Koch Bros., and Trump? Both are for putting $$$ in the pocket by deregulation and tax breaks. The Koch's are the former Tea Party which attracted so many republicans. This isn't making sense to me and I think there must be more to it.
8/4/2018, 12:53 am Link to this post PM katie5445 Blog
 
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Re: Republicans rattled by Koch shift from Trump


The Koch's support libertarian ideals, which is very far from Trump's approach. His anti-free trade policies and restrictive social policy agenda run counter to any form of libertarian thought.
8/4/2018, 5:51 pm Link to this post PM gopqed Blog
 
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Re: Republicans rattled by Koch shift from Trump


... and so it is an idealogical battle for hearts and , well, the loud voices of Trump's super elite AKA the deployables.

If you understand the history and methods of the Kochs they are American oligarchs consistently opposed to any sort of strongman cult of personality leader like Stalin or Trrump, because their power, being smart ALECs, comes from manipulation of the legislature(s) .

I surprised it has taken this long for the conflict to surface, given Trump's phony "popularism" is in direct conflict with the Koch's behind scenes power base of elite think tanks and owning the legislatures .
8/4/2018, 7:39 pm Link to this post PM Geezess Blog
 
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Re: Republicans rattled by Koch shift from Trump


Every corner of the political world needs a boogeyman and the Koch brothers are the left's current boogeyman.
8/4/2018, 9:03 pm Link to this post PM gopqed Blog
 
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Re: Republicans rattled by Koch shift from Trump


quote:

gopqed wrote:

The Koch's support libertarian ideals, which is very far from Trump's approach. His anti-free trade policies and restrictive social policy agenda run counter to any form of libertarian thought.



What specific libertarian ideals do they support?
8/5/2018, 11:46 am Link to this post PM Philer Blog
 
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Re: Republicans rattled by Koch shift from Trump


At one point, Charles Koch compared the choice between Trump and Clinton to choosing between “cancer or heart attack,” and the Koch network did not spend any money directly boosting Trump or attacking Clinton.
The Koch brothers wants small government, while Trump wants people to show I.D. to buy food.

is anybody surprised? Trump won't even met with them,
so, this is probably a warning shot from them. to get his attention.

but, who knows. Trump pretty stubborn. Koch are pretty used to politicians listening to them, and that's not happening so what's in it for them? nothing.









Last edited by snowpixie, 8/5/2018, 1:32 pm
8/5/2018, 1:30 pm Link to this post PM snowpixie Blog
 
katie5445 Profile
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Re: Republicans rattled by Koch shift from Trump


It looks like to me that it is also the voters who are not listening, the Koch Bros, darlings of tea party groups who ragged on Obama from beginning to end have become fanatical Trump fans and when you think it can't get worse.....,,,
8/5/2018, 5:56 pm Link to this post PM katie5445 Blog
 
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Re: Republicans rattled by Koch shift from Trump


The Koch Bros, goal is the rewrite the Constitution.

Koch Brothers Bankroll Move to Rewrite the Constitution
https://billmoyers.com/story/kochs-to-rewrite-constitution/
Mar 27, 2017 - Koch Brothers Bankroll Move to Rewrite the Constitution ... only, and the other tries to secure an open convention for the purpose of limiting the ...

Republicans Move States Forward In Rewriting the Constitution
https://medium.com/.../republicans-move-states-forward-in-rewriting-the-constitution-...
Nov 13, 2017 - However, there is an ability to rewrite the contents of the constitution ... and the other tries to secure an open convention for the purpose of .... Legislative Exchange Council, which is funded by the Koch brothers, among others.

Kochs Bankroll Move to Rewrite the Constitution - Common Dreams
https://www.commondreams.org/views/.../kochs-bankroll-move-rewrite-constitution
Mar 26, 2017 - Under Article V of the U.S. Constitution, if 34 state legislatures “issue a call” ... and the other tries to secure an open convention for the purpose of limiting ... Koch Industries is one of the nation's biggest polluters and has been ...

Trump serves as good excuse, so now it's time for phase two of plan to take over if not the world, the the USA.
8/5/2018, 6:44 pm Link to this post PM Geezess Blog
 


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