Osbourn, Wes. Energy and gasoline trader with Koch Supply & Trading in Wichita and Houston. Osbourn traded physical gasoline supplies in Wichita and traded paper products like futures contracts in Houston.
Packebush, Steve. Former president of Koch Fertilizer. Packebush was on the team of Koch Nitrogen employees who executed the 2003 acquisition of Farmland Industries’ fertilizer plants. He later became president of the new division. He was a key mentor to Chase Koch, bringing him into the fertilizer business and encouraging Chase to later become president.
Paulson, Bernard. Oil refining executive hired by Charles Koch to oversee the Pine Bend refinery in the early 1970s. Paulson led the efforts to break the OCAW labor union there during the strike of 1972–73. He was later promoted to oversee Koch’s oil refining operations from Wichita, where he worked closely with Charles Koch.
Peace, Steve. The California state senator who was widely seen as the “father” of the state’s electricity deregulation bill, which he cosponsored. Peace shepherded the bill into law and later tried to warn regulators that the system was being manipulated by companies like Enron and Koch Industries.
Phillips, Jonathan. Congressional staffer who helped draft key parts of the Waxman-Markey cap-and-trade bill. Phillips, a Harvard graduate, came to see global warming as a fundamental threat to the environment.
Phillips, Tim. National president of Americans for Prosperity. Phillips was an activist in conservative religious groups before joining AFP. He led the group during a period of explosive growth during the Tea Party movement of 2010.
Pruitt, Scott. Former attorney general of Oklahoma who was EPA administrator from 2017 to mid-2018. Pruitt carried forward many deregulatory efforts long sought by the energy industry and Koch Industries.
Quinn, Joseph. Member of the OCAW labor union at Pine Bend who participated in the nine-month labor strike of 1972–73.
Razook, Brad. Former CEO of Koch’s oil products division, Flint Hills Resources. Razook played a key role in helping Koch exploit the fracking boom in the Eagle Ford Shale region of Texas. He was later promoted to CEO of Koch Resources, a large division that includes Flint Hills and other natural resource companies. Razook is seen as a candidate to become CEO of Koch Industries after Charles Koch leaves the company.
Robertson, David. Koch Industries’ current president. He joined the company in 1984. Robertson oversaw large parts of Koch’s disastrous foray into the beef and agribusiness during the 1990s. He later moved to Koch’s oil refining division. Robertson is seen as a strong contender to replace Charles Koch as CEO.
Roos, Brian. Manager, or “process owner,” of the Utilities Profit Center division of the Pine Bend refinery during the mid-1990s. Oversaw the wastewater facilities that released ammonia into nearby wetlands.
Roskind, Herbert. Manager of Koch Industries’ chemical trading division who hired Bill Koch. Roskind oversaw Bill Koch’s early trading activities and tried to diminish the tension between Bill and his brother Charles.
Rothbard, Murry. Libertarian activist who cofounded the Cato Institute with Charles Koch.
Rudd, Leslie. Longtime friend of Charles Koch and the Koch family in Wichita. Rudd encouraged Chase Koch to join the family company after he graduated from college. Rudd died on May 3, 2018, at the age of seventy-six.
Ryan, Paul. Republican congressman from Wisconsin who was Speaker of the House in 2017 and 2018. Ryan was often caught in the middle of policy differences between the Koch network and the Trump administration.
Schnare, David. Longtime EPA employee who later became a critic of what he called the agency’s regulatory overreach. Schnare helped lead the Trump administration’s transition efforts at the EPA and helped draft a transition plan for the agency that aligned with Koch Industries’ interests.
Seibert, Walter. Father of twelve-year-old Zachary Seibert, a pedestrian killed in a 1993 car accident involving Chase Koch, who was driving. Walter Seibert spoke with Chase Koch after the accident, at the urging of Liz and Charles Koch.
Sementelli, Tony. Chief financial officer at Flint Hills Resources who played a critical role in helping the company exploit the fracking boom in the Eagle Ford Shale region of Texas.
Sharp, Jeff. Communications director for the House select subcommittee that wrote the cap-and-trade bill in 2010. Sharp was among the first to notice the Tea Party activism that eventually derailed the effort.
Sobotka, David. President of Koch Energy Trading from 1997 through 2001. Sobotka came to Koch from Lehman Brothers, and he brought Wall Street practices to Koch’s trading floor. He promoted a new compensation model that gave derivatives traders a bonus based on a percentage of their profits.
Soliman, Sam. Former head of trading operations at Koch’s trading desk in Houston. Soliman became CFO of Koch Industries in 2000 and was replaced by Steve Feilmeier when Soliman left the company.
Sollers, Wick. Assistant investigator to Ken Ballen in the US Senate. Helped oversee the Senate’s investigation into Koch’s oil theft in Oklahoma. Traveled to Wichita with Ballen to depose Charles Koch.
Trimm, Dennis. Manager at Georgia-Pacific’s warehouse in Portland, Oregon. Trimm was a manager when Koch Industries took over and watched the company implement its new policies. He told employees during meetings that Koch could shift their work to nonunion facilities. He was later fired for committing a safety violation.
Tromberg, Ernie. Onetime member of the OCAW labor union at Pine Bend who later left the union to join the ranks of Koch management at the refinery, where he spent his entire career.
Trump, Donald. The forty-fifth president of the United States, elected in 2016. Trump was never close with Charles Koch and operated outside of Koch’s political network.
Varner, Sterling. Longtime Koch Industries employee and protégé of Fred Koch. Varner was a father figure to Charles Koch in the late 1960s and is credited with deeply influencing Koch’s corporate culture. Varner became president of Koch Industries in 1974 and held that position for thirteen years. He retired as vice chairman of Koch’s board of directors in 1989 but remained active in the company and advised Charles Koch.
Voyles, James. Koch Industries attorney involved with the pollution case at the Pine Bend refinery in the mid-1990s. Voyles undermined whistle-blower Heather Faragher as she tried to contain illegal pollution at the refinery.
Watson, Dean. A rising star at Koch Industries who was put in charge of Koch’s rapid expansion into the agribusiness sector. Watson oversaw the failed Purina Mills acquisition and was later fired.
Williams, Roger. One of the earliest executives at Koch Industries hired by Charles Koch. Williams oversaw Koch’s sprawling pipeline division.
Winn, Abel. Leader of Koch’s experimental economics lab, run in partnership with Wichita State University, which tested the tenets of Market-Based Management. Winn ran a large-scale experiment to find ways to beat “holdouts” who bargained for higher prices.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
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Christopher Leonard is a business reporter whose work has appeared in the Washington Post, the Wall Street Journal, Fortune, and Bloomberg Businessweek. He is the author of The Meat Racket and Kochland, which was the recipient of the J. Anthony Lukas Work-in-Progress Award. A graduate of the University of Missouri School of Journalism, Leonard lives outside Washington, DC.