Koch Bros. slogan |
Translated, that means this group will shore up every Republican that is beholden to this family already, having done their bidding since put there by the Kochs, to make sure they are reelected in the midterms. It takes money, and they have it readily to spend to make sure they get what they want, and will do just about anything to get the job done. Back in 1989, "Investigators told a special Senate committee that a Wichita, Kan., company (Koch Industries) has been stealing oil from Indian lands for at least the last three years." Total value was $31.1 million. Just one example.
This is only one of several devious and illegal shams these brothers have pulled on the American public. If you are really interested in their illicit activities, read Sons of Wichita by Daniel Schulman. I couldn't put it down once I started. It reveals a trail of congressional investigations, and "Under the nearly five-decade reign of CEO Charles Koch, the company has paid out record civil and criminal environmental penalties," according to Rolling Stone. And here's one of the worst...
"...in 1999, a jury handed down to Koch's pipeline company what was then the largest wrongful-death judgment of its type in U.S. history, resulting from the explosion of a defective pipeline that incinerated a pair of Texas teenagers."Yet following an incident such as this, Charles Koch will go on TV with his syrupy shit professing he can't imagine why the American public could think anything but the fact that the Koch brothers are just magnificent benefactors to all. Either this man is too stupid to realize what he does is wrong, or else he doesn't give a damn. Probably a combination of both. The Kochtopus is one of the most influential of the conservative gangs with grassroots minions in 36 states and backup operations in data processing. There are 550 ultra-wealthy donors that finance the goings on.
USA Today says they "...plan to spend $300 million to $400 million on policy and political campaigns ahead of the 2018 elections." Progressives say, we have to counter that with people who will vote for the good of the country, not for billionaires like the Koch brothers. There are only three companies that rank among the top 30 polluters of America's air, water and climate: ExxonMobil, American Electric Power and Koch Industries. Its subsidiary, Georgia Pacific alone, dumps more pollutants into the nation's waterways than General Electric and International Paper combined.
Although the Kochs deny direct funding of the tea Party, they, especially Charles, are known to be the kingpins behind the movement. Rolling Stone says it this way...
"The Koch family's lucrative blend of pollution, speculation, law-bending and self-righteousness stretches back to the early 20th century, when Charles' father first entered the oil business."When Charles Koch took over from his father, the business flourished, because he didn't hesitate to bend or even break the law to make a buck. It was cheaper to let the Texas pipeline go without maintenance, explode and horrendously kill two teenagers then pay a court charged fine of $296 million. The Kochs appealed and later settled out of court. The dirty dealings of Charles Koch are well documented in Daniel Schulman's book, Sons of Wichita, and the Rolling Stones article, above. It will take a massive Progressive movement in 2018 to stop the Kochs and all conservatives.