Earlier this month, Koch Industries circulated a letter saying it “has not taken a position” on the strategy of keeping the government shut down unless Obamacare was defunded.

But new reports show that the company did lobby Congress to tie an increase in the debt ceiling to a 10-year debt reduction plan — a concept developed and championed earlier this year by libertarian and tea party groups like the Heritage Action, Family Research Council and Club for Growth; those are some of the same groups that pushed the Obamacare-shutdown linkage.

According to its third quarter report, Koch Industries , which spent $2.1 million lobbying from July 1 through Sept. 30, disclosed that it lobbied Congress “to increase the debt ceiling in conjunction with reducing government spending consistent with a 10 year path to a balanced budget.” That’s exactly the language used by Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.) in his budget proposal. And the idea that the debt ceiling should be raised only with the acceptance of a 10-year budget plan, was first floated last winter by several conservative groups, including the libertarian-oriented Heritage Action, which has its own ties to the billionaire brothers Charles and David Koch, who control Koch Industries. The Kochs, through a 501(c)(6) group they spearheaded, Freedom Partners, have given $500,000 to Heritage Action.

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The plan is likely what Koch meant when, in its Oct. 9 letter, it said that “We believe that Congress should, at a minimum, keep to sequester-level spending guidelines, and develop a plan for more significant and widespread spending reductions in the future.”



Other business groups, even those usually associated with conservative causes, took a different approach to the debt ceiling, according to their third quarter lobbying filings. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce , which once again led all organizations by spending $12.1 million in the quarter (and $36 million for the year so far), described lobbying on debt ceiling legislation proposed by Democrats. Like most organizations, the Business Roundtable didn’t explicitly disclose the group’s position in its lobbying report, but its language in the document made it clear that lobbyists for the group were trying to head off a default. The Roundtable, which spent $2.8 million in the third quarter, described lobbying on “issues relating to importance of addressing the FY2014 Federal Government funding and the potential impacts of a Federal Government shutdown on the U.S. economy, Issues relating to potential economic and market impacts of a debt ceiling breach.”

Besides the two business groups and Koch Industries, the only other organization that both spent more than $2 million in the quarter — an elite echelon — and reported lobbying on the debt ceiling was AARP . The group, which spent about $2.5 million overall, noted its efforts to “prevent the inclusion of Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid benefit cuts in any package pertaining to the continuing resolution or the debt ceiling.”

A total of 102 companies or organizations mentioned the debt ceiling in their third quarter lobbying reports. Many of those were either labor unions or health care companies — both insurance groups and providers. Most did not detail their specific interest in raising the debt ceiling, but those that did frequently mentioned their concern about possible cuts to Medicare and Medicaid, and payment of health care costs.

Smaller groups also said they lobbied to protect their particular interests. The environmental advocacy group Natural Resources Defense Council , which spent about $135,000, listed its concern about funding levels for environmental programs and the possibility of Congress including “anti-environment policy riders” in any resolution. Defenders of Wildlife, another environmental group, described similar concerns. The Federal Law Enforcement Officer’s Association , which spent just $20,000 in the third quarter, reported lobbying on efforts to ensure pay for law enforcement officers if the debt ceiling was not raised.

Sixty-six groups used the word “shutdown” in their third quarter lobbying reports, with a similar mix of unions, health care groups and smaller organizations apparently concerned with maintaining specific programs. Washington University in St. Louis , for example, lobbied in “support of federally supported students to remain engaged in their studies during the government shutdown.” Hotel company Marriott International reported lobbying on “general travel reductions caused by Federal shutdown and appropriations lapse.” The Laborer’s International Union of North America focused on the fate of its members during a shutdown, disclosing its lobbying “to protect federal workers in the event of a government shutdown.”

Image: Koch Industries Executive Vice President David Koch (AP Images/Mark Lennihan)



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