Team Obama Slams Koch Brothers Over 'Mother of all Wars' Quote

The Obama campaign is going after billionaire Charles Koch and the Koch Industries he and his conservative brother David run. In an E-mail from Team Obama manager Jim Messina, the campaign accuses Charles Koch of quoting Saddam Hussein in declaring that the GOP campaign against Barack Obama will be "the mother of all wars."

Messina wrote to supporters, "If that offends you, it absolutely should. But it should also motivate you, because you are the only thing that can stop them." In the E-mail, he notes that the Kochs have pledged to raise millions to defeat Obama. [See photos of the Obamas behind the scenes.]

Not surprisingly, he hopes the quote will inspire donors to write a check. "I'd rather not spend time talking about this kind of gutter politics, but one simple fact makes it impossible to brush aside: special-interest groups like Karl Rove's American Crossroads Super PAC have already pledged to pour nearly $200 million into attacking the president in the coming months—and more shadowy groups file paperwork and start running ads every week." [Check out political cartoons about the GOP.]

The Koch family had no comment today, but associates were quick to dismiss earlier reports that Charles Koch compared Obama to Saddam.

Below is Messina's full E-mail:

Here's something you and I weren't supposed to find out:

At a private function at a Colorado resort, oil billionaire Charles Koch stood in front of hundreds of conservative millionaires and said the 2012 election will be, in the words of Saddam Hussein—yes, he decided to quote Saddam Hussein—"the mother of all wars."

He then read through a list of 32 contributors who gave more than a million dollars each to bankroll the network of corporate special-interest groups that aim to tear down President Obama.

If that offends you, it absolutely should. But it should also motivate you, because you are the only thing that can stop them.

Can you make a donation of $5 or more right now?

I'd rather not spend time talking about this kind of gutter politics, but one simple fact makes it impossible to brush aside: special-interest groups like Karl Rove's American Crossroads Super PAC have already pledged to pour nearly $200 million into attacking the President in the coming months—and more shadowy groups file paperwork and start running ads every week.

Right now, the president is focused on creating jobs and improving the lives of middle-class families. And this campaign will keep doing what we've been doing from the very beginning: growing a truly grassroots organization that's doing politics a different way, and encouraging as many people as possible to take ownership of this campaign as early as possible. It has to start with you.

The Koch brothers and the front groups they fund have decided on the tone they want the election to take in the coming months—and we should expect these kinds of smears to only get worse.

But we still have a say about the kind of race we want to run and the kind of political climate we want to create. Take a stand now to support it.

Donate $5 or more today:

https://donate.barackobama.com/Fight-Back

Thanks,

Messina

Jim Messina

Campaign Manager

Obama for America

• See photos of the Obamas behind the scenes.
• Read Peter Roff: Liberal Media's Focus on the Koch Brothers Is About Intimidation.
• Check out editorial cartoons about the 2012 GOP field.

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