They Did This! Koch Industries Issues Email to Employees: "Vote for Romney... or Else!"

Koch Industries, the billion-dollar global corporation that is known for converting some of the world’s resources into services that people depend on, sent a mailing to 45,000 of its employees earlier this month on how to vote in this year’s presidential election. The company’s owners, siblings David (pictured right) and Charles Koch (pictured), who are infamously known for being GOP mega-donors, reportedly informed their Georgia Pacific employees that their livelihood could depend on the 2012 elections and that the company wholeheartedly supports Republican candidate Mitt Romney for president, according to the New York Daily News.

The voter information packet that was mailed to the employees was obtained by In These Times, a politically progressive and socially democratic monthly magazine, and the cover letter included a message from Koch Industries President and Chief Operating Officer Dave Robertson stating:

While we are typically told before each Presidential election that it is important and historic, I believe the upcoming election will determine what kind of America future generations will inherit.

If we elect candidates who want to spend hundreds of billions in borrowed money on costly new subsidies for a few favored cronies, put unprecedented regulatory burdens on businesses, prevent or delay important new construction projects, and excessively hinder free trade, then many of our more than 50,000 U.S. employees and contractors may suffer the consequences, including higher gasoline prices, runaway inflation, and other ills.

Robertson’s letter went on to sinuously explain that the ultimate voting decision was left to the employees:

We believe any decision about which candidates to support is—as always—yours and yours alone, based on the factors that are most important to you. Second, we do not support candidates based on their political affiliation.

The packet also included a flyer that listed Koch-endorsed candidates with Romney at the favored No. 1 spot. Leaving no stone unturned, Charles Koch also wrote an op-ed that slammed President Barack Obama with his brother David writing another that exulted Romney.

Amid warranted criticism for “persuading” employees to vote for Romney and fellow Republicans, Koch executive Rob Tappan said in a statement to MSNBC that the packet was sent “to encourage employees to be informed about and engaged in the political process.” He also pointed out that other mainstream corporations and labor unions also follow similar proselytizing routes involving their employees come election time.