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Breaking: Koch Industries' Outsourcing and Job Loss
In a recent television advertisement Koch Industries touted the growth of the company to create “60,000 American jobs.” The true story paints a picture of Koch Industries’ long history of job losses and outsourcing, resulting in nearly 3,000 American jobs sent overseas.
Outsourcing
Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) is a federal job training program that provides assistance to workers who lose their jobs as a result of competing foreign imports or direct outsourcing. An analysis of TAA cases, news articles, shipping records, and layoff notices revealed examples of outsourcing at 13 Koch Industries facilities, and potential outsourcing at additional facilities.- In 2003, Koch laid off 150 employees at a KoSa plant in Shelby, North Carolina. In 2004, the Department of Labor certified that a portion of 150 employees who had been laid off at a plant in Shelby, NC, were eligible for TAA as a result of outsourcing to Mexico. Former employees at the Shelby facility later filed suit against Koch claiming that the company pushed workers to, according to a former worker, “leave gracefully” or “be victims of downsizing.” (Source)
- In 2004, Koch outsourced 175 jobs from an Invista plant to Mexico, less than a month after purchasing the plant. Koch Industries had promised to retain all employees. In late 2006 and early 2007 more workers jobs were outsourced to Mexico, as detailed by the US Court of International Trade. (Sources 1, 2, 3, 4)
- In 2004, some 35 workers were laid off at an Invista plant in Athens, Georgia. In 2006, they were certified eligible for TAA because of outsourcing to Mexico. In 2008, the plant laid off an additional, 50 employees. (Source)
Happy Akin-versary!
Zero score and two years ago today, Todd Akin shook the political world with his now infamous claim that "[in the case of] a legitimate rape, the female body has ways to try to shut the whole thing down.” We could go on for hours mocking Akin's asinine comments and his recent attempt to rehabilitate his image, which included a retraction of his apology and a slew of evidence that he still doesn't understand why anybody was offended in the first place. But at this point, Akin is nothing more than another extreme Tea Party has-been. What's far more important is that, while Akin may have had a unique flare for the offensive, his extreme positions on women's health are anything but unique within the Republican party. Supporting so-called "personhood" is the de facto position in today's GOP -- a position that could make common forms of birth control like the pill illegal. Many Republican candidates oppose abortion even in the case of rape or incest, and some have gone as far to oppose it even when the mother's life is in danger.Republicans have voted to slash funding for Planned Parenthood and redefine rape as "forcible rape," and the list goes on and on. So today, American Bridge is relaunching ItsNotJustAkin.com to continue to expose Republican candidates for their ongoing efforts to regulate women's bodies. Todd Akin may not be in Congress anymore, but his legacy lives on.
Oops
Once upon a time, there was a belief that Republican governors like Rick Perry and Bob McDonnell, Chris Christie and Scott Walker, represented a bright future and a new direction for the GOP.
Not to be outdone, Perry went ahead and abused his power as governor, finally getting back in the spotlight with a couple felony indictments. Phew, that was close.
There was a time when these four governors were celebrated for charting a new vision and speaking with conviction.
These days, the closest thing they have to a new vision is Rick Perry's hipster glasses. And the closest thing they have to conviction is...well, conviction. But not the good kind.
Scott Brown: "Open" and "Unfettered" (VIDEO)
Scott Brown says a lot of things that he thinks people want to hear. Like, "I'm from New Hampshire," for example. But unfortunately for Scott Brown, reality matters. Recently, Brown has been touting the openness and unfettered-ness of his open and unfettered town halls. The only problem, as BuzzFeed recently reported, is the actual town halls seem to be a bit more closed and fettered than the former Massachusetts senator let on.
VIDEO: Mike Coffman Forgets What Birth Control Is (Literally)
Oh boy. In today's CO-6 congressional debate, Republican Mike Coffman had quite the Rick Perry moment when he made an…
Funnier Than Fallon? Chris Christie's Comedy Of Errors
Chris Christie is taking his scandal-tainted show on the road this evening for an appearance on the Tonight Show. But before he crosses the Hudson via the bridge his aides shut down access to in a cheap political stunt (maybe he's more of a tunnel man), Christie already has people in hysterics with the comedy of errors of his failing governorship. Just a short while back, Chris Christie was considered the clear frontrunner for the 2016 GOP presidential nomination. But one spiraling bridge scandal, a handful of state credit downgrades, and several millions in wasted taxpayer dollars on a joke of a self-exoneration later, Christie seems more likely to succeed Jimmy Fallon than Barack Obama. So before tonight's show, grab some popcorn and check out some of Christie's greatest hits, courtesy of American Bridge:
Seven Things You Should Know About Tea Party Radical David Brat
Here's what you should know about David Brat, the Tea Party radical who blindsided House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA) in a primary challenge on Tuesday: He is a right-wing candidate who opposes a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants, supports radically reshaping our heath care system, and event wants to scale back the regulatory powers of the FDA. Don't take our word for it? See the research below.
1. Brat supported radically altering the American health care system.
Brat Supported Radically Altering The American Health Care System, Said “‘We Need To Also Scrap Employer-Based Health Insurance.” According to Culpeper Star-Exponent "Of course, the first question I asked him was what should be done with Obamacare? ‘It needs to be scrapped,’ he replied without hesitation. ‘Completely.’ So I asked him what should take Obamacare's place, and to understand his answer, you have to know some history… When I asked him what should take Obamacare's place, his answer was, ‘We need to also scrap employer-based health insurance, and give those incentives to individuals to carry their own portable health insurance.’ He went on to say, ‘If we did that, the issue of pre-existing conditions largely goes away.’" [Culpeper Star-Exponent, 3/31/14]2. Brat called bankers “the solution, not the problem” in regards to the financial crisis.
Brat On The Financial Crisis: ‘Bankers Are The Solution, Not The Problem,’ According to The News & Advance “David Brat says that’s the state of today’s economy, and says everything we know about what is being termed a recession is wrong… The global economy is overleveraged. Ultimately, he said, pointing to the European debt crisis, the country’s economy is headed for disaster if changes aren’t quickly made. And the answer, he said, is not in economics, but ethics. ‘Bankers are the solution, not the problem,’ he said, adding, ‘[Washington] D.C. knows this.’" [The News & Advance, 1/25/13]3. Brat is radical on immigration.
Brat Opposed Any Kind Of Immigration Reform; Ran To The Right On Eric Cantor On Border Security. According to Watchdog.org, "Cantor, in Brat’s view, is flunking badly on border security. Indeed, the congressman even applauded President Barack Obama’s State of the Union address outlining a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants. On Friday, Cantor said on the House floor that ‘immigration reform could be an economic boon to this country.’ Brat is having none of it. He calls the imminent GOP cave-in on immigration an exercise in ‘crony capitalism.’" [Watchdog.org, 2/6/14]- Brat: “A Change In Immigration Policy Means Amnesty.” According to Watchdog.org "‘At every turn, the GOP establishment is favoring the elites,’ Brat declares. ‘A change in immigration policy means amnesty.’" [Watchdog.org, 2/6/14]