Scarborough sings a different tune when his own ox is getting gored. Why is he such a late convert to opposition to oil companies?
See also Republican suggests US pay for oil spill.
Scarborough: "Why is Joe Barton being allowed to keep his job?"
By Greg Sargent
Washington Post
June 24, 2010
"Why is Joe Barton being allowed to keep his job, when Joe Barton apologized to a corporation that is destroying my home town's economy, and is destroying the environment across the Gulf Coast?"
That's Joe Scarborough this morning, posing a very well-framed question to Eric Cantor. The ensuing verbal skirmish between the two men is the day's must-watch video:
Cantor put up a good fight, repeatedly claiming that Joe Barton is "not the issue," reiterating the Republican line that the real issue that matters is stopping the spill. When Cantor compared Barton's BP apology to gaffes issued by Joe Biden, Scarborough repeatedly pushed back hard, pointing out that Barton's apology came from prepared remarks.
And Scarborough wondered aloud in a mystified tone why Republicans weren't axing Barton:
"This hurts the Republican Party. This hurts the Republican brand. Joe Barton is the most powerful Republican on the Hill when it comes to energy policy, and that shows his mindset. Does it not?"
The question is, Why haven't Republicans removed him? As best as I can determine, Republicans believe there's no political percentage in doing so because Dems will continue attacking them as stooges for Big Oil no matter what they do. Republicans don't appear to think the Barton attack is as effective as, say, attacking them for taking Big Oil's campaign contributions. ..
Showing posts with label BP Gulf oil spill. Show all posts
Showing posts with label BP Gulf oil spill. Show all posts
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Thursday, June 17, 2010
Republican Joe Barton seems to feel that he's the only one who should shake down oil companies
Republican, Under Pressure, Backpedals From Apology to BP
By JACKIE CALMES
June 17, 2010
Representative Joe L. Barton had to be truly sorry by the time he apologized for his apology on Thursday.
In the four hours between his televised apology to BP — for what he called a $20 billion “shakedown” by President Obama for loss claims in the gulf oil spill — and his apology for that apology, Mr. Barton, a Republican from Texas, had been pummeled in the blogosphere, assailed by Democratic Party operatives and Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr., and, in the blow that landed, threatened by Republican leaders with being yanked from the party’s top seat on the powerful House energy committee.
...“Who would the G.O.P. put in charge of overseeing the energy industry & Big Oil if they won control of Congress? Yup, u guessed it — JOE BARTON.”
...The shakedown, in the eyes of the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics, which monitors campaign contributions to lawmakers, is actually the pitches by lawmakers for oil industry donations.
Individuals and political action committees in the oil and gas industry have been Mr. Barton’s biggest source of campaign money, it reported, contributing $1.4 million since the 1990 election cycle.
By JACKIE CALMES
June 17, 2010
Representative Joe L. Barton had to be truly sorry by the time he apologized for his apology on Thursday.
In the four hours between his televised apology to BP — for what he called a $20 billion “shakedown” by President Obama for loss claims in the gulf oil spill — and his apology for that apology, Mr. Barton, a Republican from Texas, had been pummeled in the blogosphere, assailed by Democratic Party operatives and Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr., and, in the blow that landed, threatened by Republican leaders with being yanked from the party’s top seat on the powerful House energy committee.
...“Who would the G.O.P. put in charge of overseeing the energy industry & Big Oil if they won control of Congress? Yup, u guessed it — JOE BARTON.”
...The shakedown, in the eyes of the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics, which monitors campaign contributions to lawmakers, is actually the pitches by lawmakers for oil industry donations.
Individuals and political action committees in the oil and gas industry have been Mr. Barton’s biggest source of campaign money, it reported, contributing $1.4 million since the 1990 election cycle.
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Support Big Oil Bailout Prevention Liability Act of 2010
Support Big Oil Bailout Prevention Liability Act of 2010No Taxpayer Bailout of Big Oil — Hold BP Accountable for Gulf Coast Drilling Disaster
BP oil spill cleanup
One month after BP’s Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded and sank off the Louisiana Gulf Coast, attempts to cap the gushing well have failed. Thick oily sludge has reportedly reached Louisiana’s coastal wetlands, threatening to destroy the delicate ecosystem and the multimillion-dollar seafood industry of the region.
Congress must act now to ensure that the corporations responsible for this massive disaster pay the full cleanup costs. Under current law, corporate liability for oil spills is capped at $75 million. For companies such as BP, which reported a profit of over $6 billion in the first quarter of 2010, it amounts to less than one day’s average earnings. Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ) recently introduced the Big Oil Bailout Prevention Liability Act of 2010 (S. 3305), which would increase corporate liability to $10 billion.
Urge your senators to cosponsor S. 3305 today and prevent the bailout of Big Oil!
Who is really at fault for the oil spill?
This Time Is Different
By THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN
New York Times
June 11, 2010
My friend, Mark Mykleby, who works in the Pentagon, shared with me this personal letter to the editor he got published last week in his hometown paper, The Beaufort Gazette in South Carolina. It is the best reaction I’ve seen to the BP oil spill — and also the best advice to President Obama on exactly whom to kick you know where.
“I’d like to join in on the blame game that has come to define our national approach to the ongoing environmental disaster in the Gulf of Mexico. This isn’t BP’s or Transocean’s fault. It’s not the government’s fault. It’s my fault. I’m the one to blame and I’m sorry. It’s my fault because I haven’t digested the world’s in-your-face hints that maybe I ought to think about the future and change the unsustainable way I live my life...
John Boehner accidentally, briefly suggests feds foot oil spill bill
John Boehner accidentally, briefly suggests feds foot oil spill bill
By Alex Pareene
Jun 10, 2010
Salon/AP
The Chamber of Commerce does not think it is fair that British Petroleum will have to pay to clean up the tens or hundreds of millions of gallons of oil that have spilled into the Gulf of Mexico because of its negligence. So they would like taxpayers to help foot the bill. And because GOP leadership basically represents the interests of the Chamber of Commerce, House Republican leader John Boehner accidentally revealed that he will probably eventually lobby for the federal government to contribute to the cost of cleaning up BP's huge mess...
By Alex Pareene
Jun 10, 2010
Salon/AP
The Chamber of Commerce does not think it is fair that British Petroleum will have to pay to clean up the tens or hundreds of millions of gallons of oil that have spilled into the Gulf of Mexico because of its negligence. So they would like taxpayers to help foot the bill. And because GOP leadership basically represents the interests of the Chamber of Commerce, House Republican leader John Boehner accidentally revealed that he will probably eventually lobby for the federal government to contribute to the cost of cleaning up BP's huge mess...
Saturday, May 29, 2010
Glenn Beck attacks Obama's 11-year-old daughter
Glenn Beck Apologizes for Mocking Obama's Daughter
Lauren Frayer
AOL News
May 29, 2010
Conservative talk show host Glenn Beck has apologized for a segment on his radio program in which he made fun of President Barack Obama's 11-year-old daughter, imitating her in a childish high-pitched voice and criticizing her intelligence...
Read full post here.
Lauren Frayer
AOL News
May 29, 2010
Conservative talk show host Glenn Beck has apologized for a segment on his radio program in which he made fun of President Barack Obama's 11-year-old daughter, imitating her in a childish high-pitched voice and criticizing her intelligence...
Read full post here.
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