Remember how last year the disastrous Republican tech ground game—its pitiful voter file efforts—led many campaigns to
adopt the Kochs' tools? And remember how it was clear to the RNC that the Koch brothers were just solidifying their takeover of the Republican party? Well, guess who's
finally figured that out.
[R]elations between the two sides have soured, turning into what one Republican operative described as "all-out war." Interviews with more than three dozen people, including top decision-makers in both camps, have revealed that the Kochs' i360 platform for managing voter contacts—which is viewed by many as a superior, easier-to-use interface than what’s on offer from the RNC—is becoming increasingly popular among Republican campaigns.
The RNC is now openly arguing, however, that the Kochs' political operation is trying to control the Republican Party's master voter file, and to gain influence over—some even say control of—the GOP.
"I think it's very dangerous and wrong to allow a group of very strong, well-financed individuals who have no accountability to anyone to have control over who gets access to the data when, why and how," said Katie Walsh, the RNC's chief of staff.
That's what happens when you lie down with dogs, Ms. Walsh. Of course the Kochs are trying to take over the party, and the party has been more than happy to take the millions and millions of dollars from the Kochs that comes with that. But this seems primarily only to bother the RNC. Politicians are actually pretty happy to sell their souls to the Kochs, it seems, if that means they win. As this article points out, "even some in highly consequential positions, think Priebus and the RNC are crying wolf. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) have been reluctant to conclude that i360 represents a threat to the party."
Pledges of allegiance to the Kochs on the part of candidates and electeds isn't going to be enough for them. They've already shown their intent to engineer the 2016 presidential primary, in the hopes that they will own the next president. They want the whole party, and that means holding the White House, Congress, and the keys to all the data of all the Republican voters.