How many people talk about finding a perfect partner, the people they’re going to spend the rest of their life with?
I think the Republican Party has already found its perfect mate; it should be to no one’s surprise that it’s the oil companies.
Big oil and the GOP have walked hand in hand for years.
We saw the true impact of this relationship over the summer when millions of barrels of oil spilled into the Gulf of Mexico from an offshore rig. A few months later, a pipeline burst in Michigan, spilling thousands of gallons of oil into the Kalamazoo River.
What does all this say about the relationship between the Republican Party and the oil companies? It points out this relationship has caused major problems for this country.
The effects have been around for many years. We now know the Bush administration’s energy task force, led by Dick Cheney, allowed the oil companies to write the nation’s energy policy.
According to OpenSecrets.org, Koch Industries gave more than $900,000 in campaign contributions between 2009 and 2010.
OpenSecrets also reports Exxon Mobil gave more than $700,000 while Marathon Oil gave more than $400,000 during the same period.
Louisiana Republican Senator David Vitter received more than $300,000 from the oil industry during the same cycle.
This clearly highlights the relationship the GOP has with the oil industry, but it doesn’t stop there. Not only will the oil industry practically pay for politicians, it will spend huge amounts of money to lobby them as well.
OpenSecrets reports that during 2009 to 2010 ConocoPhillips spent more than $11 million on its lobbying activities, whereas Exxon Mobil spent more than $5 million.
GOPWe have a recent example of how this works. After the BP oil spill took place, President Obama persuaded BP to create a $20 billion fund to help with the cleanup and economic impact on the communities affected.
Of course, Republicans attacked President Obama in a June Washington Post article after this news was released.
Texas Republican Congressman Joe Barton pointed out he “may be the only person in America who believes BP deserves an apology over way they’ve been treated.”
Minnesota Republican Congresswoman Michele Bachmann referred to the $20 billion fund as a “redistribution of wealth fund.”
Georgia Republican Congressman Tom Price accused the Obama administration of “Chicago-style shakedown politics.”
It was very clear to see how Republicans went out of their way to defend a company that was responsible for the largest oil spill in American history. One can only wonder what these members of Congress are thinking.
It’s almost like they’re saying it’s okay to dump sludge into our waters and not be held responsible for it.
When I was a kid and spilled something, I got in a lot of trouble. I not only had to clean up what I spilled, I was also grounded.
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