koch political network launches ad campaign to promote free trade creditleft paul vernonassociated press right bo raderthe wichita eagle via associated pressjune 4 2018washington the conservative koch political network said on monday that it would begin a multimilliondollar advertising campaign to promote free trade sharpening a disagreement with president trump over tariffs and highlighting a growing rift between conservative donors and the republican base on trade issuesthe paid media campaign from three kochaffiliated groups freedom partners americans for prosperity and the libre initiative will promote the traditional freemarket view of open trade as beneficial to all countries involved the groups said the advertisements would draw on a set of trade principles in line with that philosophy including calling on mr trump to scrap tariffs that he has threatened and already put in placedavid koch died on aug 23 at the age of 79the campaign comes at a moment of tension within the republican party which has traditionally embraced freemarket views but is now being led by a protectionist president who routinely threatens and imposes trade barriers that have long been anathema to many republicansthe billionaire koch brothers charles and david have long supported republican candidates and causes including mr trumps 15 trillion tax cut but the kochs have increasingly found themselves at odds with the president and sometimes with republican leaders in congress on other issues including trade and immigrationthey previously funded an ad campaign urging congress and the president to assist millions of undocumented immigrants who were brought to the united states as children and last week they bought web ads to support a democrat senator heidi heitkamp of north dakota even tough she is a top republican target in the midterm electionsthe trump administration has taken some incredibly positive steps for the american economy but tariffs will undercut that progress and needlessly hamstring our full economic potential tim phillips the president of americans for prosperity said in announcing the advertising campaignjames davis the executive vice president of freedom partners said the campaign was a demonstration of our longterm commitment to advance commonsense trade policies that will ensure americas brightest days are ahead and to directly confront the protectionist ideas that would hold us backalong with pressing the administration to drop its tariffs on steel and aluminum imports and on chinese goods the group is calling on mr trump to work on modernizing the north american free trade agreement with mexico and canada and to reengage in negotiations toward joining the transpacific partnership alongside 11 pacific rim nationsit is unclear how much of an impact the campaign may have on the republican base mr trumps embrace of protectionist policies such as tariffs has helped galvanize a rapid shift in attitudes among rankandfile republicans on trade the pew research center reported in may that republicans are now equally likely to say freetrade agreements have been generally good or generally bad for the united states in 2015 before mr trump began a presidential bid that criticized trade deals heavily republicans were