Koch tells donors in desert: Conservative political network can increase tenfold

Fredreka Schouten | USA TODAY

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INDIAN WELLS, Calif. — Fresh off a string of victories in 2017, the powerful political and policy network aligned with the billionaires Charles and David Koch plans to grow tenfold in the years ahead, Charles Koch told hundreds of donors gathered for a three-day retreat.

The network, the most influential conservative group in politics outside the Republican Party, already plans to spend a record $400 million to shape policy and politics in the midterm election cycle, a 60% jump from the $250 million Koch groups spent in the two years leading up the 2016 presidential race.

“The capabilities we have now can take us to a whole new level,” Koch told the 550 network contributors who assembled at a luxury resort in the California desert for their annual winter retreat.

“My challenge to all of us is to increase the scale and effectiveness of this network … by another tenfold on top of all the work and progress we’ve already made,” the 82-year-old industrialist said. “If we do that, I’m convinced that we can change the trajectory of this country.”

His remarks came as top Koch officials touted a slew of wins during the first year of the Trump administration, ranging from the passage of a $1.5 trillion tax overhaul that gives corporations a permanent 40% tax cut to President Trump’s moves to nominate dozens of conservatives to lifetime positions on the federal bench.

“We’ve got momentum,” Brian Hooks, a top Koch lieutenant, said of the network’s policy gains. “We feel like we have the wind at our back.”

On Sunday, the largest group in the Koch network, Americans for Prosperity, announced a new initiative to mobilize conservative activists for the next Supreme Court vacancy and to speed confirmation of judges to lower courts around the country. Sarah Field, a former official with the conservative Federalist Society, will oversee the new push.

The Koch groups spent heavily to advance Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch’s confirmation last year and have lobbied to help Trump nominees advance through the Senate.

Koch groups spent $20 million to help push the tax overhaul through the Republican-controlled Congress and on Saturday, announced plans to spend another $20 million this year to sell the plan to voters. Early polling showed public skepticism of the plan’s benefits, and network operatives view the tax plan as a key part of the strategy to help Republicans retain their hold in Congress in November’s midterms.

Texas Sen. John Cornyn, the No. 2 Republican in the Senate, told the Koch donors he’s grateful for the assist.

“I’m delighted the network is going to be committed to helping us tell that story because we’re going to have to continue to combat the misinformation and the naysayers and the people who want this to fail,” Cornyn said during a panel discussion with other Republican lawmakers to talk about federal policy.

At least nine elected officials, all Republicans, are expected to attend the Koch gathering and mingle with the network’s wealthy conservatives. They include Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey, Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin and Nevada Attorney General Adam Laxalt, who is running for his state’s governorship.

House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., addressed the donors by pre-recorded video on Sunday afternoon, lauding them for their help in passing a tax bill he said would “unshackle” businesses and fuel job growth.

“We would not be in this unique position without the hard work and devotion from everyone within the Koch network,” Ryan said.

Ryan said this year the House would do more to tackle overhauling the welfare system, along with criminal-justice changes the Koch groups advocate.

The Koch brothers, with a combined net worth that tops $100 billion, are among the richest people on the planet, and their ambitions far exceed politics as they look for long-lasting ways to expand their libertarian-leaning agenda to all corners of American society.

The weekend’s events are highlighting some of those broad policy initiatives.

Mark Holden, a top Koch aide, is working with the White House to craft a prison reform plan to reduce rates of recidivism; the network last year sent $100 million to colleges and universities to promote free-market ideas, and Koch groups are rapidly expanding their reach into local communities with anti-poverty programs.

Two network donors, Salen Churi and Brian Tochman, are unveiling plans this weekend to start a venture capital firm, Trust Venture, to find and fund startups whose products and services would otherwise be thwarted by what they call government’s “burdensome public policy barriers.”

More: Koch network to spend $20M selling GOP tax overhaul ahead of midterm elections

More: Vice President Pence implores Koch donors for 'every ounce' of support on tax cuts

Churi oversees an “innovation” clinic at the University of Chicago’s law school and previously worked for the Institute for Justice, a conservative litigation group that has challenged government licensing requirements for small businesses, such as food trucks and makeup artists.

In another high-profile venture for Charles Koch, the investment arm of his Kansas-based conglomerate, Koch Industries, recently put up $650 million to help Meredith Corp. buy Time Inc. and its flagship news magazine, Time.

The Koch donor retreats, now in their 15th year, are not open to the public. Journalists who are invited to attend must agree several restrictions, including limiting photography and not identifying donors.

In all, about 700 contributors give at least $100,000 annually to the network, and many give millions more to the affiliated Koch groups.

More: Why the Koch brothers want to kill an obscure Senate rule to help shape the federal courts