Koch Industries responded . . . by reemphasizing the need of employees to follow the guidelines: Georgie-Pacific internal safety presentation, slides 1, 2, and 3. The presentation is undated but includes data through the first quarter of 2017.
Georgia-Pacific was more unsafe than Koch’s competitors: Safety presentation, slides 5 and 6, “2016 AF&PA Member Company TCIR Quartiles” and “2016 AF&PA Member Company DART Quartiles.”
Koch’s response . . . reduce risk: Safety presentation, slides 1, 9, 10, 11.
Another chart, entitled “Georgia-Pacific 20-Year Bet”: Safety presentation, slide 9.
This was the reality faced by the Dodger and the Hammer: Hammond, Dodge, Smith, Franzen, McKinney, interviews by author, 2013–14.
Once again, the Dodger and the Hammer . . . Koch’s team: Hammond, Dodge, interviews by author, 2013–14; descriptions of Red Lion hotel taken from notes and photos during reporting trip in 2017.
Bonuses were anathema to workers . . . the same way that a wage hike did: Patricia Cohen, “Where Did Your Pay Raise Go? It May Have Become a Bonus,” New York Times, February 10, 2018; US Salary Increase Survey 2017/2018 (London: Aon Hewitt, 2017).
The Dodger said he wasn’t having it: Hammond, Dodge, interviews by author, 2013–17.
IBU members filed . . . Hammond and Dodge’s office: Hammond, Dodge, Smith, Franzen, McKinney, interviews by author, 2013–14; descriptions of union hall meeting room from notes and photos taken inside the meeting room during a reporting trip, 2017.
Hammond sobered up after he retired: Hammond, interviews by author, 2013–17.
During the final months . . . another election: Hammond, Dodge, Smith, Franzen, interviews by author, 2013–17.
Trump’s candidacy . . . disrupting Charles Koch’s plans: Fredreka Schouten, “Charles Koch: We Like 5 GOP Candidates in Primaries,” USA Today, April 21, 2015; Fredreka Schouten, “Charles Koch: We’re Not in Politics to Boost Our Bottom Line,” USA Today, April 24, 2015.
Koch had carefully set up . . . flipped it over: Matt Flegenheimer and Michael Barbaro, “Donald Trump Is Elected President in Stunning Repudiation of the Establishment,” New York Times, November 9, 2016.
Shortly after . . . Republicans scurried to reorient themselves around Trumpism: Former senior US Senate staffer speaking on background, interview by author, 2017.
CHAPTER 24: BURNING
Springtime came early . . . in 2017: Notes reporting in Washington, DC, 2017; Jeremy White and Henry Fountain, “Spring Came Early: Scientists Say Climate Change Is the Culprit,” New York Times, March 8, 2017; “NASA, NOAA Data Show 2016 Warmest Year on Record Globally,” press releasee, NASA, January 18, 2017; carbon, parts per million in atmosphere, taken from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration database.
political seasons . . . were being disrupted: Descriptions of Trump’s inauguration taken from C-Span archive.
The Trump administration saw itself as a revolutionary force: Trump political operative speaking on background, interview by author, 2017.
Koch responded . . . with a strategy that bore his hallmarks: This analysis is based on interviews with political operatives in both the Koch and Trump spheres and observations of Koch’s political actions during 2017 and 2018. “Block-and-tackle” is my own phrase that I believe captures the Koch strategy.
The first fight was to repeal Obamacare: Jeff Stein, “Obamacare Jacked Up Taxes on the 1 Percent, Gave $16 Billion Annually to Poor,” Washington Post, March 28, 2018; Veronica Stracqualursi, “How the GOP Health Care Bill Failed Without a Vote,” ABC News online, last modified March 24, 2017.
Trump promised to both repeal . . . and replace: Robert Costa and Amy Goldstein, “Trump Vows ‘Insurance for Everybody’ in Obamacare Replacement Plan,” Washington Post, January 15, 2017; Stracqualursi, “How the GOP Health Care Bill Failed.”
another reason for Trump to compromise: Transcript of “Trump’s Takeover,” Frontline, April 10, 2018.
On March 6 . . . plan to repeal and replace Obamacare: Description of Americans for Prosperity event taken from reporting notes, 2017; Robert Pear and Thomas Kaplan, “House Republicans Unveil Plan to Replace Health Law,” New York Times, March 6, 2017; Haeyoun Park and Margot Sanger-Katz, “The Parts of Obamacare Republicans Will Keep, Change or Discard,” New York Times, March 6, 2017.
Inside the US House of Representatives . . . Freedom Caucus: Rand Paul and Mark Meadows, “Senator Paul, Rep. Meadows: Let’s Fully Repeal ObamaCare, Then Have an Open Debate on How to Replace It,” FoxNews.com, last modified March 6, 2017; Bob Bryan, “Conservatives Just Dealt ‘Trumpcare’ a Significant Blow,” Business Insider, March 15, 2017; Isaac Arnsdorf, “Club for Growth and Koch Nurtured Freedom Caucus,” Politico online, last modified October 22, 2015.
The halting effort to pass it was carried forward by Paul Ryan: Transcript of “Trump’s Takeover,” Frontline; Alana Abramson, “Read Paul Ryan’s Response to the Republican Health Care Bill Failure,” Time online, last modified March 24, 2017.
Charles and David Koch stepped in: Kevin Robillard, “Koch Network Pledges to Defend Republicans Who Vote Against GOP Health Bill,” Politico online, last modified March 22, 2017; “Maze of Money,” visual map of Koch Industries political financial network, Center for Responsive Politics, last modified January 7, 2014.
This tactic carried risks: Teachout, interview by author, 2017; Zephyr Teachout, Corruption in America: From Benjamin Franklin’s Snuff Box to Citizens United (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2014).
The bill showed passing signs of life: “White House Officials Offer Change to Failed Healthcare Bill—But Is It Enough?,” Associated Press, April 4, 2017; “House Freedom Caucus Announces Support for House AHCA Bill with MacArthur Amendment,” statement from House Freedom Caucus, April 26, 2017; Elizabeth Mann Levesque and Molly E. Reynolds, “The AHCA’s MacArthur Amendment: Unusual Politics, Unusual Policy,” Brookings Institution online, last modified May 12, 2017; Thomas Kaplan and Robert Pear, “House Passes Measure to Repeal and Replace the Affordable Care Act,” New York Times, May 4, 2017.
Ryan’s mistake was caused by seemingly good intentions: Rachael Bade and Josh Dawsey, “Ryan Bucks White House, Setting Up Clash on Taxes,” Politico online, last modified May 22, 2017; Michelle Fox, “Border Adjustment Tax Is ‘Critical’ Part of Tax Reform, Chief GOP Tax Writer Says,” CNBC.com, last modified May 25, 2017.
It is easy to see why Paul Ryan would have been seduced: Stephen Ohlemacher, “GOP Running into Opposition from GOP on Tax Overhaul,” Associated Press, February 3, 2017; Matt O’Brien, “Tax Cuts Are Easy; Tax Reform, and Not Losing Revenue, Is the Tough Part,” Washington Post, March 29, 2017; Scott Greenberg and Scott A. Hodge, “FAQs About the Border Adjustment,” Tax Foundation online, last modified January 30, 2017; Kyle Pomerleau, “What Is the Distributional Impact of a Destination-Based Cash-Flow Tax?,” Tax Foundation online, last modified January 18, 2017; “Trump Eyes Border Tax on Imports to Pay for Wall,” Congressional Quarterly News, January 26, 2017.
Charles Koch opposed the BAT: Philip K. Verleger Jr. et al., “Border Adjustment Import Taxation: Impact on the US Crude Oil and Petroleum Product Markets,” white paper, Brattle Group, Cambridge, MA, December 16, 2016.