Lucas Jackson/Reuters
The Koch brothers’ dislike for Donald Trump is so strong that they would possibly sit out of 2016 entirely if it came down to a general election between the real estate mogul and Hillary Clinton. A senior official close to Charles and David Koch told Vanity Fair that a Trump-Clinton race would repulse the brothers who’ve previously been considered large bankrollers of conservative presidential picks.
“There is absolutely no love between the Clintons and the Kochs, whose company experienced one of the most traumatic periods in its history as it fought off regulators during Bill Clinton’s presidency,” Vanity Fair’s Daniel Schulman explained. “But, so strong is the dislike for Trump within the Koch network, that a Clinton-Trump race is a tough call.” A senior Koch official told Schulman: “I could see the network not participating in the presidential election at all.”
The Kochs have yet to endorse in the GOP primary, and have been hesitant to launch an anti-Trump donor campaign for fear of the reality TV star’s unrelenting criticism that would follow.