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83-489: The Koch brothers are the sons of Fred C. Koch (1900–1967), who founded Koch Industries , now the second largest privately held company in the United States. As of 2012 they owned 84% of Koch Industries stock, and as of December 2022, Charles Koch was estimated to have a net worth of $ 66 billion, making him the 14th-richest person in the world. Fred C. had four sons, but the other two, Fredrick and William, are not involved in

166-772: A right-to-work state. Zeitgeist In 18th- and 19th-century German philosophy , a Zeitgeist ( German pronunciation: [ˈtsaɪtɡaɪst] ; lit.   ' spirit of the age ' ; capitalized in German) is an invisible agent, force, or daemon dominating the characteristics of a given epoch in world history . The term is usually associated with Georg W. F. Hegel , contrasting with Hegel's use of Volksgeist "national spirit" and Weltgeist "world-spirit". Its coinage and popularization precede Hegel, and are mostly due to Herder and Goethe . Other philosophers who were associated with such concepts include Spencer and Voltaire . Contemporary use of

249-610: A 3 April 2014 op-ed piece in the Wall Street Journal , Charles described himself as involved in politics "only reluctantly and recently" and "only in the past decade.", starting with the founding of the biannual donor seminars. However, the nonpartisan fact-checking group PolitiFact found the Kochs had "made many campaign contributions prior to 2004", coming to approximately $ 7 million, in addition to federal lobbying and contributions to conservative ideological think tanks (Cato Institute,

332-432: A conservative direction. The network has been called "one of the nation's most influential political forces", "a shadow political party, complete with its own field offices and national voter database". In the two years up to 2018 it is estimated to have spent $ 400 million on "policy and politics", and "millions more on educational and philanthropic initiatives". The network meets twice a year at invitation-only summits, where

415-545: A founding member of the John Birch Society . He gave a speech in 1963 warning of “a takeover” of America in which Communists would “infiltrate the highest offices of government in the U.S. until the president is a Communist, unknown to the rest of us”. According to at least one source (Chris Cillizza), the Koch's domination of American politics, "especially among Republicans", began in 2004 and lasted "through at least 2016". In

498-430: A letter to supporters, Charles Koch outlined the change in mission: We live in a period of unprecedented progress — economic, social, technological — but not everyone has shared in that progress. While many people have gotten ahead, too many people are falling behind. Our charge is clear: we must stand together to help every person rise In many ways, this new name already expresses who we are. … But this new name also marks

581-465: A long history of heart problems. His son David described in 2010 how he received word that his father had died: "Father was on a hunting trip bird-shooting in Utah. He was in a blind with a gun loader next to him. He was having heart palpitations and wasn't shooting that well. Finally a lone bird came over. He took the shot and hit it square. The duck falls from the air. He turns to the loader and says, 'Boy, that

664-607: A matter of controversy, Koch's work in Europe also entered public scrutiny. In 1934, Koch had partnered with William Rhodes Davis to build the Hamburg Oil Refinery, the third-largest oil refinery serving the Third Reich , a project which was personally approved by Adolf Hitler ; contemporary critics claim this showed a direct tie between fascism and the modern conservative movement, notwithstanding Koch's much greater involvement in

747-535: A new chapter — and a new call to action. According to a description in the Washington Post, the Stand Together Foundation is the name of a nonprofit arm that the Koch apparatus created in 2016 "to support community groups addressing maladies like poverty, addiction, recidivism, gang violence and homelessness" and has (as of 2019) "provided grants to 140 organizations". "Freedom Partners, an entity that

830-476: A partnership with Lewis Winkler , a former employee of Universal Oil Products (which is now UOP LLC ). Winkler developed a cracking apparatus for heavy crude oil with, ostensibly, no patented difference in comparison to his former employer's intellectual property; thus, in 1929, UOP sued Winkler-Koch for patent infringement . Also that year, nearly three years before the patent case went to trial, Winkler-Koch signed contracts to build petroleum distillation plants in

913-521: A primary challenge to Trump during the 2024 Republican Party presidential primaries . On November 28, the Koch Network announced its endorsement of Nikki Haley . The impact of the Koch brothers' work has been called "extraordinary", unlike what anyone else has done (by Democratic activist Rob Stein ) Another more sympathetic observer (Brian Doherty, libertarian author ) argues that while "there are few policy victories you can lay directly at their feet,"

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996-557: A privately held company which – under the principal ownership and leadership of Koch's sons Charles and David  – would be listed by Forbes as the second-largest privately held company in the United States in 2015. Fred C. Koch was born in Quanah, Texas , the son of Mattie B. (née Mixson) and Harry Koch , a Dutch immigrant. Harry had begun working as a printer's apprentice in Workum , Netherlands. He worked over

1079-437: A seminar is held promoting the political views of the brothers. Although the network is said to have "secretive ranks", it is suspected that members include the founders of many large firms — "everything from Citadel to Franzia wine ". When Charles Koch steps down as head of the network, it is "widely expected" that his son, Chase Koch , will take over (with assistance by "several longtime Koch aides"), and that Chase may turn

1162-522: A symbolic target for the protests. According to the Palm Beach Post , David Koch was active in Wisconsin politics. Americans for Prosperity reportedly spent $ 700,000 on ads supporting Governor Scott Walker's changes to collective bargaining. In July 2012, David H. Koch hosted a $ 50,000-a-person ($ 75,000 a couple) fundraising dinner for 2012 Republican Party Presidential candidate Mitt Romney , which

1245-416: A very conservative Republican and was not a fan of big government," and was paranoid about communism. David told author Brian Doherty his father "was constantly speaking to us children about what was wrong with government and government policy. It's something I grew up with – but a fundamental point of view that big government was bad, and impositions of government controls on our lives and economic fortunes

1328-841: A year at printers' shops, in The Hague and in Germany, before coming to the U.S. in 1888, where he bought the Tribune-Chief newspaper. Fred attended Rice Institute in Houston from 1917 to 1919 and graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 1922, where he obtained a degree in chemical engineering practice. Koch started his career with the Texas Company in Port Arthur, Texas , and later became chief engineer with

1411-551: A “former employee in the Koch’s political operation," “we are partly responsible” for the Trump populist movement nastiness. “We invested a lot in grassroots army that was not controllable”. In the spring of 2019, the Koch network (made up of a "constellation of groups" and funded by "around 700 like-minded conservatives and libertarians who contribute at least $ 100,000 annually") rebranded itself from "The Seminar Network" to “Stand Together”. In

1494-734: Is in contrast to the Great Man theory propounded by Thomas Carlyle , which sees history as the result of the actions of heroes and geniuses. Contradistinct Hegel perceived such "great men", specifically Napoleon , as the "embodiment of the world-spirit" ( Die Weltseele zu Pferde "the world-soul on horseback" ). Carlyle stresses that leaders do not become leaders by fate or accident. Instead, these individuals possess characteristics of great leaders and these characteristics allow them to obtain positions of power. According to Hegel biographer D. R. Forsyth, Leo Tolstoy disagreed with Carlyle's perspective, instead believing that leadership, like other things,

1577-437: Is primarily a quality of an individual and that some people are pre-dispositioned to be a leader whereas others are born to follow these leaders. In contrast, situationist researchers believe that social behavior is a product of society. That is, social influence is what determines human behaviors. Therefore, situationism is of the same opinion as zeitgeist theory—leaders are created from the social environment and are molded from

1660-446: The 2008 United States presidential election , when Democrats won the presidency, both houses of Congress, and the collapse of the housing market and threat of a bank collapse made laissez-faire free market economics appear untenable, the Koch brothers led the resistance to the triumphal Obama administration, warning that Americans "faced the greatest loss of liberty and prosperity since the 1930s". Billionaires came forth to invest in

1743-692: The American Enterprise Institute , and the Cato Institute . Three of these are Koch Family Foundations (the Charles G. Koch Charitable Foundation, the Claude R. Lambe Charitable Foundation, and the David H. Koch Charitable Foundation). The NCRP has also stated that it is not surprising that the philanthropic giving directed by the Koch brothers often goes to "that do research and advocacy on issues that impact

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1826-552: The FBI , the CIA , and public schools. (His brother Charles also supported his candidacy.) By being a candidate, Koch took advantage of campaign finance laws exempting him from limits on donations and ultimately "contributed about $ 2.1 million, more than half the [Libertarian] campaign budget.” This gave the candidates enough cash to run advertisements and try to get on the ballot in all 50 states. However, he and running mate Ed Clark won only 1.1% of

1909-771: The Libertarian Party's candidate. However, his "intense" focus was "on economic and fiscal issues" - i.e. being fiscally conservative or economically liberal rather than other libertarian causes, and as of 2014 the millions of dollars both brothers donated to candidates went to Republicans , not Libertarians. They actively fund and support organizations that contribute significantly to Republican candidates, promote climate change denial , and in particular that lobby against efforts to expand government's role in health care and climate change mitigation . Unlike less patient, shrewd, or deep-pocketed activists, they spent time and money on less visible projects "like influencing policy at

1992-599: The Soviet Union , which did not recognize intellectual property rights. This extended litigation blocked Winkler-Koch from selling the technology in the U.S. for several years. In the words of Jane Mayer , "Unable to succeed at home, Koch found work in the Soviet Union." Between 1929 and 1932 Winkler-Koch supported the Kremlin and "trained Bolshevik engineers to help Stalin 's regime set up fifteen modern oil refineries" in

2075-565: The "Potential Methods of Communist Take-over in U.S.A. by Internal Subversion" was "Infiltration of high offices of government and political parties until the President of the U.S. is a Communist... Even the Vice Presidency would do as it could be easily arranged for the President to commit suicide." He wrote that "socialism is the precursor to communism," that the Soviet Union was "a land of hunger, misery, and terror", and that he toured

2158-538: The 1970s. These included the Cato Institute (by the end of 1974, Mr. Koch had helped found what would become the Cato Institute) and the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. On at least two occasions, David Koch voiced support for positions at odds with conservative Republican orthodoxy, such as Social liberalism , legal abortion, same-sex marriage , using defense spending cuts and tax increases to balance

2241-483: The 2016 election cycle. The gatherings were characterized by great secrecy (participants were routinely urged to destroy all paperwork of the gatherings), commitment to conservative free market ideology, and the wealth of the participants, known as "investors" (in 2015, for example, 18 billionaires were present at a seminar). An example of a seminar at the network gatherings was one entitled "Understanding and Addressing Threats to American Free Enterprise and Prosperity", at

2324-541: The 2020 presidential race. As early as mid-2015, the New York Times reported: Once known for grim letters to fellow wealthy Americans warning of socialist apocalypse, Charles G. Koch now promotes research on the link between freedom and everyday happiness. The Koch's were "trading compliments with President Obama". James Davis, a spokesman for Freedom Partners, “In light of the barrage of political attacks and distortions of our record, beliefs, and vision, we are taking

2407-983: The June 2010 event in Aspen, Colorado . The meeting invitation stated that "[our] prosperity is under attack by the current [i.e. the Obama] Administration and many of our elected officials" and "we cannot rely on politicians to [defend our free society], so it is up to us to combat what is now the greatest assault on American freedom and prosperity in our lifetimes". The seminar program indicated that past meetings have featured speakers including Supreme Court Justices Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas ; Governors Bobby Jindal and Haley Barbour ; commentators John Stossel , Charles Krauthammer , Glenn Beck , and Rush Limbaugh ; Senators Jim DeMint and Tom Coburn ; and Representatives Paul Ryan , Mike Pence , and Tom Price . Some presentations at

2490-493: The Koch brothers. Another example being the seemingly spontaneous anti-Obamacare outrage at town hall meetings in summer of 2009, that was assisted by FreedomWorks (connected with the Koch brothers) which "circulating a memo instructing Tea Partiers on how to disrupt" the meetings. [REDACTED] The Koch network is a "tightly interlocked set of organizations" that the brothers and "their closest advisors have developed over time into an integrated political machine". Contrary to

2573-561: The Koch network has about three and a half times as many employees as the Republican National Committee plus GOP congressional campaign affiliates"), its "network’s operatives and resources" do not work independently of the GOP, but "are closely intertwined" with it. For example, of the first fifteen directors of the different state Americans for Prosperity organizations, almost 70% "had previously held staff posts in GOP campaigns or in

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2656-576: The Koch network" (nicknamed the "Kochtopus" During Obama's administration, the Republican Party with the help of the Koch-network "made inroads at all levels of governments". At the state level, they gained 900 seats in state legislatures. In a paper analyzing the John Birch Society, Charles Koch “argued in favor” of at least imitating the society when it came to "not widely advertising" who ran

2739-464: The Kochs and a new adviser, Richard Fink, formed "Citizens for a Sound Economy", a free enterprise-oriented group that evolved into Americans for Prosperity. In addition to funding think tanks, the brothers support libertarian academics; since 1992, Charles has funded the Charles G. Koch Summer Fellow Program through the Institute for Humane Studies , which mentors young, self-described libertarians. It

2822-527: The Kochs announced plans to raise $ 889 million leading up to the 2016 elections. After the Republican primary, they decided to not donate to Trump's campaign at all, instead focusing on the Congress and Senate races. This included spending “heavily" on get out the vote drives for Republicans in general which helped Trump win "in key swing states”. Charles Koch criticized Trump's Muslim travel ban suggestions during

2905-448: The Kochs have changed the general political zeitgeist "of valuing free markets " and "libertarianism, in a way it never did 20 years ago." Jane Mayer points out that while there may have been few Koch "policy victories", there were plenty of policy defeats inflicted on their adversaries that they can take credit for. Circa 2015, national opinion polls indicated public support for a government action to address global warming, raise taxes on

2988-614: The Medway Oil & Storage Company on the Isle of Grain in Kent , England. In 1925 he joined a fellow MIT classmate, P.C. Keith, at Keith-Winkler Engineering in Wichita, Kansas . Following the departure of Keith in 1925, the firm became Winkler-Koch Engineering Company. In 1927, Koch developed a more efficient thermal cracking process for deriving gasoline from crude oil, which allowed smaller players in

3071-593: The Reason Foundation, the Mercatus Center and Citizens for a Sound Economy). In public opinion pieces and other forums, Charles Koch proclaimed his conception of " economic freedom " as essential to the well-being of society. Believing society so far off course that it was far from sufficient to simply fund candidates for office, the Kochs sought to change the zeitgeist . To that end they founded and provided sustained funding for an array of free-market and libertarian think tanks and academic research entities starting in

3154-461: The Soviet Union during its first five-year plan . According to Mayer, "Over time ... Stalin brutally purged several of Koch's Soviet colleagues. Koch was deeply affected by the experience, and regretted his collaboration." The company also built installations in countries throughout Europe, the Middle East and Asia. During the 21st century, when the political donations of Koch's descendants became

3237-541: The Soviet Union. In response, Koch President and COO David L. Robertson acknowledged that Winkler-Koch provided the cracking unit for the 1934 Hamburg refinery, but said that it was but one of many "iconic" American companies doing business in Germany at the time. Robertson provided archival documents showing that from 1928 to 1934, Koch's company helped build 39 cracking units for heavy oil refineries, including ones located in England and France. Having succeeded in securing

3320-508: The Trump administration ( Mike Pence , Mike Pompeo , Wilbur Ross , Betsy DeVos , Rebekah Mercer ) that Politico dubbed it “Trump’s Koch administration.” Koch’s have been accused of setting the general tone of Trump and the Trump-dominated Republican Party—helping to "convince voters that Washington was corrupt and broken and that, when it came to governing, knowing nothing was preferable to expertise.” According to

3403-512: The brothers have become highly visible, with "journalists and bloggers" reporting on their latest "fundraising goals and election maneuvers", Democrats demonizing them (Democratic fundraising appeals that mentioned the Koch brothers reportedly have generated more donations than those that do not), media interviewing them and publishing their op-eds. Koch Industries describes itself as being committed to free societies and free market principles and as supporting those who champion these things. After

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3486-532: The brothers move to the Republican Party doesn't stem from "a change of heart, but one of tactics" since libertarianism "was costly and could be bad for the family business long term. Charles Koch funds and supports libertarian organizations such as the Cato Institute , which he co-founded with Edward H. Crane and Murray Rothbard in 1977, and is a board member at the Mercatus Center , market-oriented research think tank at George Mason University . In 1985,

3569-440: The budget, and a withdrawal by the U.S. military from the Middle East. At the same time he also said his "intense" focus was "on economic and fiscal issues" not social issues or "how much military we need,” and that on foreign policy "I’m not an expert ... so my opinion probably doesn’t count for very much." David was the Libertarian Party's vice-presidential candidate in 1980, running on a platform of abolishing Social Security,

3652-526: The campaign and went so far as to say "it's possible" that Hillary Clinton could be a better president, although he strongly denied rumours that he would actually support Clinton. In June 2018, the Kochs backed a multimillion-dollar campaign organized by three pro-free trade political groups to oppose the Trump tariffs . On the other hand, although they ”disavowed Trump” and opposed the extremes of his populist movement, so many Koch operatives served in top positions in

3735-705: The countryside and received what he wrote was a "liberal education in Communist techniques and methods." Koch grew persuaded that the Soviet threat needed to be countered in America. According to journalist Daniel Schulman , writing in Sons of Wichita: How the Koch Brothers Became America's Most Powerful and Private Dynasty , upon his return to the United States, Koch "saw evidence for communist infiltration everywhere" and

3818-466: The digging of investigative reporters such as Jane Mayer, even many Washington insiders had not heard of them. However, after Barack Obama was elected in 2008, the Koch's led what some called an "all-out offensive" against Obama and congressional Democrats, attracting many other wealthy conservatives to their seminars and "deploying huge sums of secret money" to block Obama initiatives like cap and trade on carbon emissions and health care reform. Since 2010,

3901-539: The early stages of a nascent industry. He proposed that the timing of involvement in an industry, and often in sports as well, affected the probability of success. In Silicon Valley , a number of people ( Peter Thiel , Alistair Davidson, Mac Levchin, Nicholas G. Carr , Vinod Khosla ) have argued that much innovation has been shaped by easy access to the Internet, open source software , component technologies for both hardware and software (e.g., software libraries, software as

3984-484: The effort, telling a reporter that conventional politics "tends to be a nasty, corrupting business ... I'm interested in advancing libertarian ideas". In a 1974 speech to libertarian thinkers and business leaders in Dallas, Charles argued that the most effective response to Americans alienation from free markets and minimal government was "not political action", but “the development of a well-financed cadre of sound proponents of

4067-453: The event online or to the media, and make all arrangements through Koch staff, not resort employees. Any audio or visual recording gear (smart phones, tablets, cameras) were confiscated prior to sessions. At at least one gathering, white-noise-emitting-loud speakers were pointed outwards from the event by audio technicians to foil any media attempting to listen in. When one breach of secrecy occurred, "an intense week-long internal investigation"

4150-522: The family business; Charles and David bought them out in 1983, and neither are involved with the family foundations , or Charles and David's political or philanthropic network. The brothers' ideology is libertarian , more specifically the right-libertarian branch most commonly found in American-style libertarianism . The late David Koch described himself as a social liberal , and in the early years of their political activity ran for vice president as

4233-727: The family fortune, Koch joined new partners in 1940 to create the Wood River Oil and Refining Company, which later became known as Koch Industries . In 1946, the firm acquired the Rock Island refinery and crude oil gathering system near Duncan, Oklahoma . Wood River was later renamed the Rock Island Oil and Refining Company. In 1966, he turned over day-to-day management of the company to his son, Charles Koch . In 1932, Koch married Mary Clementine Robinson in Kansas City, Missouri . Mary

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4316-407: The focus of the network away from partisan politics. Charles and David have run fundraising/seminars on conservative public policy and political strategy twice a year since 2003. Only about 17 people participated in 2003, but that grew to around 500 in early 2016. The seminars grew from raising less than $ 100 million in 2008, under $ 300 million in 2014, and somewhere between $ 700 and $ 900 million for

4399-404: The free enterprise philosophy". He regarded politicians as "actors playing out a script" and turned his focus away from the actors and towards supplying "the themes and words" for the actors "scripts". By 2012 David told Politico that he considered "himself a Republican first and foremost — rather than a Libertarian or a nonpartisan supporter of free enterprise". According to writer Eric Black ,

4482-486: The gatherings are restricted. Guests may be required to give up their cell phones, media presence limited to only "a handful" of organizations, and photos and videos "strictly prohibited". One 1997 study by the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy (NCRP) identified twelve American foundations which have had a key influence on U.S. public policy since the 1960s via their support for The Heritage Foundation ,

4565-438: The impression of some, it is not an impenetrable “maze of money” funding all matter of right-wing groups; though some organizations outside of the core group have been funded, most of the grants bestowed by its "funding conduits" (such as Freedom Partners), are relatively tiny and not ongoing. While the network has also been called a third political party because of its size and organization ("According to Kenneth Vogel at Politico,

4648-412: The industry to better compete with the major oil producers. He invented this technology five years after he graduated from MIT. A consortium of large companies quickly sued in response, filing 44 different lawsuits against Koch, embroiling him in litigation for years. Koch prevailed in all but one suit (which would later be overturned, due to the judge having been bribed). In 1925, Koch had entered into

4731-443: The network has gradually raised the brothers' profile and made them a "bogeyman" among many liberals and Democrats . In May 2019, the Kochs announced a change in direction, described as a "turn away from partisan politics to focus more on goals that cut across ideologies". The Koch network would henceforth operate under the umbrella of Stand Together , a nonprofit focused on supporting community groups. The network emphasized this

4814-419: The offices of Republican elected officials". As of mid 2018, the chief "lieutenants" of Charles and David Koch encouraged media to refer to the "Koch network" rather than the "Koch brothers" in their reporting. The network was founded by Charles and David Koch and is made up of "several hundred", (another estimate is about 500) donors who pay a minimum of $ 100,000 each year, and work to influence American life in

4897-657: The one list of donors to the Koch network to surface publicly (from a 2010 summit) Koch donors tend to be disproportionately from the financial or fossil fuel sector of the economy, and to have made or inherited money from private (not publicly traded) companies. Some of the most well-known donors to the network include: Steven A. Cohen , Paul Singer , and Stephen A. Schwarzman . Other prominent and wealthy participants include: Robert Mercer , Ken Langone , Richard Strong, Philip Anschutz , Richard DeVos (1926–2018), Richard Gilliam, J. Larry Nichols, Harold Hamm , Richard Farmer. In 2008,

4980-402: The pamphlet was "a forceful, though deeply paranoid polemic intended to jar Americans from their apathy." According to his son, Charles, "Many of the Soviet engineers he worked with were longtime Bolsheviks who had helped bring on the revolution." It deeply bothered Fred Koch that so many of those so committed to the Communist cause were later purged. According to his son, David, his father "was

5063-412: The profit margin of Koch Industries,” the conservative non-profits the network funds working to promote lower taxes and less regulation favorable to that bottom line. Fred C. Koch Fred Chase Koch ( / k oʊ k / KOHK ; September 23, 1900 – November 17, 1967) was an American chemical engineer and entrepreneur who founded the oil refinery firm that later became Koch Industries ,

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5146-477: The rich and close loopholes that benefited them, increase funding for social security, or infrastructure, limits on campaign spending. But inside the "beltway" of the nation's capital, where the success of the Koch network's election campaign victories meant a majority in congress, there was an embrace of austerity, tax cuts for "job creators", and a dismissal as "out of the question" measures fighting global warming and inequality. Critics like Mayer also allege that

5229-536: The second largest donation to Scott Walker 's 2010 campaign for governor of Wisconsin. It donated $ 43,000, second in size only to PAC donations of $ 43,125 from both the Wisconsin realtors and the Wisconsin home builders. That contribution amounted to less than 0.5% of Walker's campaign total because of the limits placed on campaign contributions. Most support for Walker was in the form of expenditures estimated at $ 3 million from Americans for Prosperity (AFP). Due to Koch's contribution to Walker's campaign, David Koch became

5312-440: The secrecy of the Kochs and some of their operatives helped create a “conventional wisdom" that America's turn to the right was "a public backlash against liberal spending programs", when in fact out-of-sight, the Koch network was helping this political shift along. The Tea Party movement has been attacked as Koch-funded Astroturf —as opposed to Grassroots —political movement, with groups like Sam Adams Alliance having "deep ties" to

5395-614: The situation. Further, this approach was expressed by social psychologist Kurt Lewin by the equation B = f(P, E) where behavior (B) is a function (f) of the person (P) and the environment (E). Executives, venture capitalists, journalists, and authors have argued that the idea of a zeitgeist is useful in understanding the emergence of industries, simultaneous invention, and evaluating the relative value of innovations. Malcolm Gladwell argued in his book, Outliers , that entrepreneurs who succeeded often share similar characteristics—early personal or significant exposure to knowledge and skills in

5478-427: The situation. The concept of zeitgeist also relates to the sociological tradition that stems from Émile Durkheim and recently developed into social capital theory as exemplified by the work of Patrick Hunout . These two perspectives have been combined to create what is known as the interactional approach to leadership. This approach asserts that leadership is developed through the mixing of personality traits and

5561-410: The society. Their father is quoted as saying, “The whale that spouts is the one that gets harpooned." Not surprisingly, the Koch brothers' “ambitious enterprise” was “largely hidden” from public view. They avoided “all but the minimum legally required financial disclosures”. The guest list at their gatherings was “shrouded in secrecy”. Guests were admonished to destroy all paperwork, make no mention of

5644-496: The state legislative level". By 2010, they had donated more than $ 100 million to dozens of conservative advocacy organizations. From 2009 to 2016, the network of conservative/right-wing donors they organized pledged to spend $ 889 million and its infrastructure was said by Politico to rival "that of the Republican National Committee ". Despite its secrecy, the vast reach, massive funding, and political success of

5727-408: The state's Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 . The brothers pledged to donate $ 60 million in the 2012 election season to defeat President Barack Obama . According to OpenSecrets , of $ 274 million in anonymous 2012 contributions, at least $ 86 million is "attributed to donor groups in the Koch network". According to Mother Jones , Koch Industries' Political Action Committee (PAC) contributed

5810-479: The states and mobilize grassroots activists along with paid operatives." Richard Harold Fink , a former economics professor and former executive vice president of Koch Industries, was described in 2012 by Laurie Bennett as "a longtime associate of the Kochs who oversees much of their influence spending", and by Jane Mayer as "the central nervous system of the Kochtopus." The secrecy was effective enough that prior to

5893-466: The steps necessary to get our story out to the public.” At least one critic (Clay Wirestone) maintains "Koch-affiliated groups" are still active "at the front lines of our current culture wars". Explanations for the change include Koch's concern over the success of non-libertarian Donald Trump in the Republican Party and his divisiveness, and/or the success of the goals of the original network. The donor network of Charles Koch announced it would fund

5976-598: The term sometimes, more colloquially, is similar to the Overton Window refers to a schema of fashions or fads that prescribe what is considered to be acceptable or tasteful for an era: e.g., in the field of architecture . Hegel in Phenomenology of the Spirit (1807) uses both Weltgeist and Volksgeist , but prefers the phrase Geist der Zeiten "spirit of the times" over the compound Zeitgeist . The Hegelian concept

6059-404: The three main Koch family foundations contributed to 34 political and policy organizations, three of which they founded, and several of which they directed. As of 2011, Koch Industries' political action committee had donated more than $ 2.6 million to candidates. The Koch brothers support primarily Republican candidates and in 2010 they supported California Proposition 23 , which would have suspended

6142-486: The vote, and the experience of running for office led him to change course: "I had enough ... [W]e are not a nation that debates issues. We vote on candidates' personalities." By 1984, David had parted company with the Libertarian Party, because, he said, "they nominated a ticket I wasn't happy with" and "so many of the hard-core Libertarian ideas are unrealistic". Charles was also soured on direct electioneering after

6225-399: Was a magnificent shot,' and then keels over dead." In 1928, Koch traveled to the Soviet Union to build oil refineries, but he came to despise communism and Joseph Stalin's regime. Koch self-published a 39-page, anti-communist pamphlet "A Business Man Looks at Communism" relating his experiences in the Soviet Union and warning of the threat of Communist take-over. Koch wrote that one of

6308-451: Was a product of the "zeitgeist", the social circumstances at the time. Great Man theory and zeitgeist theory may be included in two main areas of thought in psychology . For instance, Great Man theory is very similar to the trait approach . Trait researchers are interested in identifying the various personality traits that underline human behaviors such as conformity, leadership, or other social behaviors. Thus, they agree that leadership

6391-488: Was in 2003 when the Kochs became disillusioned with mainstream Republican promotion of "certain regulations and new social spending on a Medicare drug program" under President George W. Bush . According to Charles, “we said, ‘Gosh, we’ve got to get involved in politics’”. This began the twice-yearly gatherings of wealthy conservative donors known as seminars, the funding and directing of "a full array of political party-like activities, including organizations that could operate in

6474-476: Was launched "to identify and plug the leak". Interested in maintaining their discreet influence, Charles and David have donated to non-profit groups who do not disclose their donors. The secrecy abated somewhat starting at the 2015 summer seminar, when some reporters were invited and "allowed to attend some sessions, including those featuring many of the Republican Party’s presidential candidates". Based on

6557-408: Was not good." In 1958, Koch became a founding member of the John Birch Society , a right-wing American political advocacy group that opposes communist infiltration and supports limited government . Koch held John Birch Society chapter meetings in the basement of his family's home in Wichita, Kansas . Also in 1958, Koch helped amend the constitution of the state of Kansas to make Kansas

6640-542: Was once used to air campaign commercials, will cease to exist. Americans for Prosperity will now oversee all political and policy efforts. Groups that cater to specific constituencies, like Libre for Latinos or Concerned Veterans for America, have moved under the AFP umbrella." (Koch Industries continued to donate to Americans for Prosperity, giving—as of May 31, 2022 -- $ 6.5 million for the 2022 election cycle.) The Kochs also told donors and supporters that they would not be involved in

6723-752: Was the daughter of a prominent Kansas City physician, Ernest Franklin Robinson, who helped to found the University of Kansas School of Medicine , and Mary Burnet Kip, who died at an early age. Her mother Mary was the paternal granddaughter of William Ingraham Kip , the Episcopal missionary bishop to California; and the maternal granddaughter of William Burnet Kinney , ambassador to Italy, and his wife, author Elizabeth Stedman (née Dodge) . The Kochs had four sons: Frederick (1933–2020), Charles (b. 1935), and twins David (1940–2019) and William (b. 1940). Fred Koch had

6806-470: Was the subject of liberal and progressive protests. Koch Industries cited the protests an example of what they see as liberal hypocrisy regarding fundraising as these same groups don't protest big money donations for Democratic fundraisers. William Koch, the younger brother of Charles and David, gave $ 1 million to Restore Our Future , a super-PAC backing Romney. During the 2008 presidential race , David Koch donated $ 2,300 to Romney. A group associated with

6889-432: Was “not a branding exercise” and stated that its priorities would be efforts aimed at such anodyne goals as increasing employment, addressing poverty and addiction, ensuring excellent education, building a stronger economy, and bridging divides and building respect. Some critics maintain "Koch-affiliated groups" are still active "at the front lines of our current culture wars". The "Koch brothers" were sons of Fred C. Koch ,

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