They Did What !

Despite the well known fact that offshore drilling will not bring down gas prices, the “straight talk maverick” turned “double talk yes man” continues to tout this as a must-do item in his energy plan.

Why do you suppose he would do this, especially since, prior to this past June, he was adamantly opposed to offshore drilling? Could it possibly be… perish the thought… M O N E Y?

Campaignmoney.org recently issued a report that includes the following points:

From 1989 through May 2008, John McCain had raised more than $1.3 million dollars from the oil and gas industries. Since June 16, when McCain publicly announced his support for offshore oil drilling, campaign contributions from the oil and gas industries have skyrocketed.

• In Texas alone, June oil and gas-connected donations to McCain’s Victory ’08 Fund, his hybrid fundraising venture with the RNC and state committees, reached $1,214,100.
• Of that total, $881,450, or 73 percent, came after June 15. McCain announced his position in favor of offshore drilling on June 16.
• A preliminary review of FEC filings exposes major contributions from oil executives and their spouses from at least eight other states in the few days following McCain’s reversal.
• Thirty-three McCain staffers and fundraisers have received $19.3 million in lobbying fees from at least 30 oil and gas industry corporations and associations.

Many of the oil companies whose executives and PACs have donated the most to John McCain have been represented in Washington by lobbyists working on the McCain campaign.

• Hess Corp donated $63,400 represented by Wayne Berman, John Green.
• Exxon Mobile donated $41,251 represented by Kerry Cammack, Frank Donatelli.
• Chevron Corp donated $28,800 represented by Wayne Berman, John Green, Richard Hohlt.
• Occidental Petroleum donated $18,050 represented by Charles Black, James Hyland, Steven R. Phillips.

The four top oil lobbyists on the McCain campaign have been paid $11,475,000 to lobby on behalf of the oil and gas industries.

Wayne Berman

• Berman is one of John McCain’s top bundlers, as he has raised at least $500,000 for McCain’s presidential campaign.
• Since 2004 Berman has earned $3,170,000 lobbying for four major petroleum companies, including oil giants Chevron Corp and Hess Corp.
• Federal records show that in 2005, when the Senate voted to allow drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Berman was employed as a lobbyist by Chevron Corp, Amerada Hess Corp, and the American Petroleum Institute.
• Berman was registered as a Chevron lobbyist in December 2005 when the oil giant became the first company to refuse to participate in an oil spill drill. Less than three months later, in February 2006, Chevron spilled 31,000 gallons of crude oil just off the New Jersey coast.
• In 2007, while Berman lobbied for Chevron, the company reported its highest ever yearly profit of $18.7 billion, despite record high prices at the pump.
• Berman’s lobbying clients from the oil and gas industries have donated $105,300 to McCain’s campaigns since 1990.

Charlie Black

• Black is John McCain’s chief political adviser and chairman of BKSH and Associates, a major Washington lobbying firm. Black’s wife, Judy, is a top bundler for McCain, as she has raised at least $500,000 for his campaign.
• Since 2001 Black has received $1,725,000 to lobby for three major oil companies, including Occidental Petroleum and the Russian company Yukos Oil.
• Senate disclosure records show that in 2005, when the Senate voted to allow drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Black was employed as a lobbyist by Occidental Petroleum, the fourth largest U.S. oil and gas company.
• Black was hired in May 2004 to lobby for Yukos Oil, months after the company’s founder, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, was arrested on charges of fraud and tax evasion.
• In 2003, while Black was employed as a lobbyist for Occidental Petroleum, soldiers guarding the company’s pipeline in Columbia killed three local labor leaders. These leaders were falsely said to have ties to guerilla groups that attacked Occidental pipelines. Occidental employees were also responsible for giving incorrect coordinates to Columbian military pilots in 1998, resulting in the deaths of 18 civilians after a village located near an Occidental pipeline was hit by cluster bombs.
• Black’s lobbying clients from the oil and gas industries have donated $18,550 to McCain’s campaigns since 1990.

John Green

• Green is McCain’s congressional liaison, coordinating efforts between the McCain campaign and Republicans in the House and Senate. Green has also raised between $50,000 and $100,000 for the McCain campaign.
• Since 2002 Green has been paid $3,450,000 to lobby for four major oil and gas companies, including oil giants Chevron Corp and Hess Corp.
• Senate disclosure records show that in 2005, when the Senate voted to allow drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Green was employed as a lobbyist by Chevron Corp, Amerada Hess Corp, and the American Petroleum Institute.
• In 2007, while Green lobbied for Chevron, the company reported its highest-ever yearly profit of $18.7 billion, despite record high prices at the pump.
• Over the last seven years, Green’s lobbying firm has been paid $1,430,000 by the American Petroleum Institute. According to a recent House committee investigative report, the API successfully persuaded the Bush administration against regulating greenhouse gases under the Clean Air Act, despite support from many officials for these actions.
• Green’s lobbying clients from the oil and gas industries have donated $106,050 to McCain’s campaigns since 1990.

Steven R. Phillips

• Phillips is a McCain bundler who has raised between $100,000 and $250,000 for the campaign.
• Since 1999 Phillips has been paid $3,130,000 to lobby for major oil and gas interests, including BP and Irving Oil.
• Senate disclosure records show that in 2005, when the Senate voted to allow drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Phillips was employed as a lobbyist by Chevron Corp, Amerada Hess Corp, and the American Petroleum Institute.
• Phillips’ lobbying clients in the oil and gas industries have donated $40,950 to McCain’s campaigns since 1990.

For the complete report go to: http://www.campaignmoney.org/files/Its_A_Gusher.pdf