Koch Industries’ campaign donations questioned after company’s decision to remain in Russia

More than two dozen U.S. lawmakers received roughly $110,000 in campaign contributions from Koch Industries in the weeks leading up to Vladimir Putin’s attack on Ukraine — money some ethics lawyers say should be returned given the company’s decision to maintain operations in Russia. U.S. lawmakers are being scrutinized for accepting campaigns contributions from the conglomerate, which is run by billionaire Charles Koch, even as other major U.S. and European companies flee the country to avoid sanctions over its invasion of Ukraine. The company’s glass manufacturer Guardian Industries, which has two facilities in Russia, will remain fully active despite the Kremlin’s war with Ukraine, Koch Industries President and Chief Operating Officer Dave Robertson said in a statement last week. U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration and Western allies have taken aim at Russia with sanctions, including targeting the country’s central bank.

Ethics lawyers told CNBC the Koch’s donations could influence congressional leaders as they determine how to further aid Ukraine’s fight against Russian aggressors. “Having lawmakers dependent on Putin enablers for their positions as they are making decisions about how to handle this crisis is dangerous for America and dangerous for democracy,” Walter Shaub, who ran the Office of Government Ethics under multiple administrations, told CNBC. Lawmakers who have taken money from Koch Industries, simply “should return the donation and stop taking money from Koch,” Richard Painter, who was chief White House ethics lawyer under then-President George W. Bush, said in an interview. At least one lawmaker, Rep. Kurt Schrader, D-Ore., won’t accept future donations from Koch Industries and will donate what it has recently received to a charity dedicated to providing aid to Ukraine, spokeswoman Deb Barnes said after CNBC emailed to ask about the donations. Schrader’s campaign received $4,500 from the Koch Industries’ political action committee during the 2022 election cycle, according to the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics, which tracks campaign donations and spending.