Oil companies reported big profits in the first quarter of 2011 with a whopping gusher profit increase of 69% for Exxon and Royal Dutch Shell reporting increased profits of 40%. Public campaign money data reported by the Federal Election Committee revealed the four largest oil companies, ExxonMobil, ConocoPhillips, Chevron and BP, combined gave $285,000 to politicians in the first quarter of 2011.
According to Politico.com, "The top five recipients are Republicans:
Speaker John Boehner: $15,000
Sen. John Barrasso: $12,000
House Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy: $10,000
House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton: $10,000
Rep. David McKinley: $8,000"
Amidst these stellar profits, the greed of the oil companies persists and grows when we are seeing almost record gas prices. Is it just my imagination or did the increase in gas prices really start going crazy about the time politicians started seriously considering cutting subsidies to oil companies?
The Public Campaign Action Fund's national campaigns director David Donnelly stated,
“There’s no real good explanation for why these subsidies are continuing when you look at the size of these profits and the price of gas right now. The only answer is the irrational campaign finance system that leads lawmakers to listen more to donors than to common sense,”
Will GOP politicians still continue to pander to large corporate interests in light of the recent public scrutiny of the Ryan Budget Plan adopted by the Republican House whereby making the rich richer through support for profiteering corporations and stealing services from hard working Americans? This seems to be the Hood Robin plan of Right Wing politicians.
As always, contact your elected officials to weigh in on this topic.
Find your elected officials here.
All politicians want is power and money. They would do almost anything to gain a little more money and power. If politicians have already been payed $285,000 for the first quarter of 2011 of course they will agree with these oil companies so they can get more money. GOP politicians are notorious for only agreeing with things that benefit only them, they dont care about anyone else but themselves so the more they get payed by oil companies the more they will side with them.
ReplyDeleteI think it is so ridiculous that politicians are getting paid this type of money just to side with companies. It cost me $60.05 to fill up my G6 yesterday and that is just way too much. I think that all of that money should be stripped from the politicians and used to offset the rising costs of gas. It's time for their pockets to start getting hit and not the pockets of the people that are struggling to make it. But these are the types of things that go on in politics and I don't think there is any way to stop it.
ReplyDeleteUgh! It's just corrupt. As long as the politician's pockets are happy, everything is right with the world, never mind us "common people" trying to make ends meet while having to pay the gas for our cars! In an idealistic world, these people would be jailed or something for their stupidity. The nerve...
ReplyDeleteAlthough when one steps back to take a look things, this has been going on for quite sometime, just not really out in the open. Kind of makes you want to sit back and think what's wrong with America.
Politicians are money hungry; middle and low class citizens cant afford the growing gas prices. They know that gas is a necessity so they continue to increase the price and this is wrong, taking money from hard working people who can barely make it. Gas companies can care less about how much the prices are because they are making so much money they dont see our struggle
ReplyDeletewell this is really crazy as hell, I can not imagine what those people are going to do with all these money, as if they are starving, or their needs does not stop???
ReplyDeletehow do they think, are they really in need to that money or do they enjoy watching others suffering??? I do not know what I am working hard for is it to pay the bills or just to pay the Gas???
All of Washington is controlled by corporate interests. It is truly disgusting. While I'm not doubting the donation amounts contained in your article, you must realize it is not just the GOP that receives campaign contributions from big oil. Opensecrets.org is a good resource of such info, as Politico tends to be more left-sided.
ReplyDeleteAll of these so-called represenatives vote for the interests of the oil companies, big pharma, big agra and wall street. Corruption is rampant. These people do not represent us and haven't for quite some time. The 2-party system is a facade.
Lastly, the prices gouging all of us are really not because of an increase in oil prices, it is because the dollars we are buying it with have been nearly totally devalued. We can thank the FED for pumping in worthless paper, inflating the money supply into oblivion to the point that it is worthless. The dollar is going to collapse.
Firstly, I find the sum needed to put a national politician in your pocket pitifully paltry. Secondly, it provides a windfall profit at such small expense for Big Oil. Living in the state that I do, it is crucial that Big Oil not be allowed to prevail. Here in Florida we have too much of our natural resources at stake and in an extremely vulnerable position to allow Big Oil free rein to destroy our state through drilling.
ReplyDeleteInteresting - I also feel the gas prices rose when BP started spitting out their weak financial compensation to those who lost their livelihoods due to the oil spill. This, combined with natural competitiveness amongst the big oil corporations leads also to continually rising prices at the station. Coupled with what you mentioned, using gas prices as leverage to get the tax breaks they so obviously deserve (sarcasm...) and the politicians in office who will feed the hands that feed them...
ReplyDeleteOne solution used to be using public transportation. But that won't be a viable solution now with these gas prices because the cost of public transportation will rise in conjunction with the price of gas. It's slightly reminiscent of the gas crisis of the seventies - not in terms of a shortage; just in coming up with ways to get around using a lot of gas.
My solution is simple, and healthy. I walk.
This is nothing new. Oil companies are just getting bashed because they report some of the largest profits out of all businesses. $285,000 is not a lot of money especially divided between 5 people. There are certain companies that give that much to single politicians. Exxon claimed last week that after they paid their taxes, their net profit was 2 cent per gallon. The oil companies are just a pawn, and supply and demand is increasing the price at the pump.
ReplyDeleteIf the most money donated was $15,000, then the evil shadowy oil companies are just not trying! Didn't they report record profits..? that'd seem to be lots of walking-around money to me!
ReplyDeleteThis is standard practice for "Corporate America" anymore. No matter what branch in government that is observed, you can always smell the blatantly obvious corruption of big-business standing off to the side. Never ask a politician to define what is or isn’t acceptable campaign practice, no matter which side of the aisle he sits. It’s like asking a bank robber to establish acceptable bank security measures and then sentencing limits for convicted bank robbers.
ReplyDeleteAs for the oil companies... It doesn't matter how many hybrids and electric Nissan Leaf's you have puttering down the streets. They are manipulative, conniving and ready to greasy the greediest palm so that they can get their way. These campaign contributions in the article seem minimal compared to numbers I have heard in the past. Regardless, greed is greed, no matter the dollar amount.