Koch network: Difference between revisions - Wikipedia

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{{short description|Charles G. and David H. Koch and their activities in US politics}}

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[[Charles Koch|Charles G.]] (born 1935) and [[David Koch|David H. Koch]] (1940–2019), sometimes referred to as the Koch brothers,<ref name=mayer-dark-2-3/> have become famous for their financial and political influence in [[Politics of the United States|United States politics]] with a [[Right-libertarianism|right-libertarian]] or [[Libertarianism in the United States|American-style libertarian]] political stance. From around 2004 to 2019,<ref name="Cillizza-changed-2019">{{cite news |last1=Cillizza |first1=Chris |title=The Point. How the Koch brothers fundamentally changed modern politics |url=https://www.cnn.com/2019/08/23/politics/david-koch-charles-koch-brothers/index.html |access-date=19 December 2022 |agency=CNN |date=23 August 2019}}</ref> with "foresight and perseverance",<ref name=mayer-dark-2-3/> the brothers organized like-minded wealthy libertarian-oriented conservatives, spent hundreds of millions of dollars of their own money to build an "integrated" and&nbsp; "stealth" network of think tanks, foundations, "grassroots" movements,<ref name="Cillizza-changed-2019"/> academic programs, advocacy and legal groups to "destroy the prevalent statist paradigm"<ref name=mayer-dark-statist>article by Charles Koch, "The Business Community, Resisting Regulation", in the ''Libertarian Review'', August 1978, quoted in {{cite book|title=Dark Money: The Hidden History of the Billionaires Behind the Rise of the Radical Right |date=2016 |first1=Jane |last1=Mayer |publisher=Doubleday |pages=54}}</ref> and, reshape public opinion to favor minimal government and to prevent the implementation of governmental regulations that would harm the profit margins of Koch family companies and investments.<ref name=mayer-dark-2-3>{{cite book|title=Dark Money: The Hidden History of the Billionaires Behind the Rise of the Radical Right |date=2016 |first1=Jane |last1=Mayer |publisher=Doubleday |pages=2–3}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RsYr_iQUs6QC&q=koch&pg=PA144|title=The Oxford Handbook of Climate Change and Society|last1=Dryzek|first1=John S.|last2=Norgaard|first2=Richard B.|last3=Schlosberg|first3=David|year=2011|publisher=OUP Oxford|isbn=978-0199566600|language=en}}</ref><ref name=Fisher/> As of mid 2018, the media has been encouraged to refer to the "Koch network" rather than the "Koch brothers".<ref name=severns-assailed-2018/>

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,<ref name=Fisher>{{cite news | last=Fisher|first=Daniel|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/danielfisher/2012/12/05/inside-the-koch-empire-how-the-brothers-plan-to-reshape-america/#49acde6e650b | title=Inside The Koch Empire: How The Brothers Plan To Reshape America | work=[[Forbes]]| date=December 5, 2012 | access-date=December 15, 2013}}</ref> 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.<ref name="Bloomberg-billionaire">{{cite news |title=Bloomberg Billionaires Index |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/billionaires/profiles/charles-d-koch/ |access-date=21 December 2022 |agency=Bloomberg}}</ref> Fred C. had four sons, but the other two, Fredrick and William, are not involved in the family business; Charles and David bought them out in 1983,<ref>The brothers settled in 2001, in {{cite magazine|author=Kroll, Luisa|title=Billionaire Family Feuds: The High Stakes Of Dysfunction And Dissent|date=June 1, 2012|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/luisakroll/2012/06/01/billionaire-family-feuds-the-high-stakes-of-dysfunction-and-dissent|magazine=Forbes|access-date=July 10, 2012}}</ref> and neither are involved with the [[Koch family foundations|family foundations]], or Charles and David's political or philanthropic network.