BP and the Obama Agenda

For years, liberals in Washington have tirelessly thwarted America from tapping its domestic sources of energy, while hypocritically lamenting our “addiction to foreign oil.” They have forsworn abundant energy supplies just off our coasts and erected boundaries against drilling and energy development right here at home. The unfortunate effect of their effort is to unnecessarily drive exploration further and further offshore, to deeper and deeper depths.

Suddenly, those same forces are forging a marriage of convenience with BP to scapegoat the entire energy industry for BP’s individualized failures. In his Oval Office speech to the nation, for instance, President Obama resorted to sloppy slurs against “oil industry lobbyists” and “an entire way of life being threatened by a menacing cloud of black crude.”

By doing so, the far left factions of Congress and the administration seek to use the Gulf spill as a political opportunity to shove an ulterior agenda down America’s throat. In that same Oval Office speech, Obama exposed his real agenda, saying, “we have failed to act with the sense of urgency that this challenge requires,” and, “the time to embrace a clean energy future is now. Now is the moment for this generation to embark on a national mission.”

Does the phrase “never let a crisis go to waste” ring a bell?

What these liberal opportunists forget is that oil helped propel our nation’s very economic growth and prosperity for over a century. The overwhelming majority of America’s energy enterprises possess a proven track record and have managed to safely extract oil for decades. According to the Interior Department, offshore drilling produced seven billion barrels of oil between 1985 and 2001, with a spill rate of just 0.001%. The Obama Administration, however, is attempting to punish others for the failures of BP, which has long suffered from an abysmal safety record relative to its peers.

One disturbing byproduct of the recent Gulf spill is the light it shed on the cozy relationship between BP and the Obama Administration. Despite the usual empty tough talk from the White House, the close association between the White House and BP is a commonly known fact inside the Beltway. The reality is this crisis has brought to light the codependency of BP and the Obama administration – each gaining from the others cooperation.

For instance, Obama is the top recipient of BP money over the past 20 years, and received the largest single donation from BP during the last presidential election. Ken Salazar’s Department of Interior is also known for its close ties with BP, including former company executive Sylvia Baca, who was appointed Deputy Assistant Secretary for Land and Minerals Management. Undersecretary of Energy Dr. Steven E. Koonin was BP’s chief scientist for four years. Additional Obama Administration/BP connections keep emerging, such as former lobbyist Hillary Rosen, who maintains close relationships with Congressional Democrats and now consults for BP. Additionally, close Obama supporter Tony Podesta has earned over $700,000 in lobbying fees from BP.

Here’s why these revelations are so important. Questions remain about the fate of our nation’s demonized domestic energy industry, and the American people will be watching closely to see how the BP oil catastrophe shakes out in Washington. Will BP continue to try and universalize their dangerous safety record, and will Obama and his followers keep using the current crisis to push their partisan political agenda?

Perhaps instead of simply pointing fingers at the entire energy industry and impeding American businesses that don’t cut corners on safety in the manner BP has, our elected officials need to take a look at what serves the interest of the American people and the nation’s economy. Now is not the time to make rash policy decisions or hastily shut down energy production and threaten high quality jobs, continued domestic economic investment and energy stability.