Wingnut of the Day: James Inhofe

It is a fucking disgrace that James Inhofe is the chairman of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works. Unsurprisingly, oil and gas is the number one industry donating to Inhofe's campaigns. Dirty Energy Money has a graph that shows a who's who of energy companies donating to the Senate's leading science denier. Campaign cash might explain why Inhofe makes incredibly stupid statements like this.

“I have offered compelling evidence that catastrophic global warming is a hoax. That conclusion is supported by the painstaking work of the nation's top climate scientists.”

Fun fact: Koch Industries, an oil companies of the Koch Brothers, is one of Inhofe's leading donors.

WalMart to Be Built on Florida Rain Forest Land

The Miami Herald reports that the University of Miami has come to an agreement with Ram to develop 40 acres of a rain forest preserve. The land will be used for a Walmart, LA Fitness center, Chik-fil-A, Chili’s restaurants and other box retail stores. Needless to say, environmentalists are not happy.

“You wonder how things end up being endangered? This is how. This is bad policy and bad enforcement. And shame on UM,” said attorney Dennis Olle, a board member of Tropical Audubon and the North American Butterfly Association, who wrote to Florida’s lead federal wildlife agent Friday demanding an investigation.

The proposed land for development contains many endangered plants and species. Conservationists were sent in last month to rescue plants and other rare life. They found more than what they bargained for.

To their surprise, rescuers picking their way through the forest in June and earlier this month found a trove of rare plants outside land staked off for preservation, including the tiny, endangered polygala smallii, a small flowering herb. They also spotted rare butterflies, including the Bartram’s hairstreak, one of the butterflies expected to be named to the endangered species list this summer, and the Atala hairstreak, which almost went extinct in the middle of the 20th century.

Environmental protection is next to nonexistent under the Rick Scott administration. The oil industry wants to drill in the Everglades. Even the environmentally unfriendly Jeb Bush was never that bold.

Rep. Joe Barton Says Dumb Things

The reason Rep. Joe Barton says laughable things is because he desperately wants to protect the oil industry. In 2010, Barton received more campaign contributions from the oil and gas industry than any other member of Congress. That explains why Barton spouted a crazy theory about wind power causing global warming.

Wind is God’s way of balancing heat. Wind is the way you shift heat from areas where it’s hotter to areas where it’s cooler. That’s what wind is. Wouldn’t it be ironic if in the interest of global warming we mandated massive switches to energy, which is a finite resource, which slows the winds down, which causes the temperature to go up? Now, I’m not saying that’s going to happen, Mr. Chairman, but that is definitely something on the massive scale. I mean, it does make some sense. You stop something, you can’t transfer that heat, and the heat goes up. It’s just something to think about.

Barton wants to be a United States Senator. God help us all.

Earth Day: Who Wants to Eat Mutant Shrimp?

It be be years before we will know the full extent of the damage of the Gulf Coast oil spill. Republicans in the House of Representatives and Obama administration appointee Ken Feinberg have done nothing to speed up the payment process BP fines being used for clean-up. We are now finding mutant fish (pictured above) and eyeless fish in the Gulf. Oil is still washing up on the Louisiana coast. This travesty is allowed to continue because BP America contributes to the campaigns of both political parties.

Daily Kos is running a petition with the mutant shrimp photo. The petition will be sent to Speaker John Boehner's office.

To Speaker John Boehner:

It is time for the House of Representatives to join the Senate in passing legislation mandating that fines paid by BP go toward clean up and restoration of the Gulf Coast.

Amen.

Profile in Courage: Marco Rubio

It is getting harder for Sen. Marco Rubio to defend his opposition to the Dream Act. Felipe Matos pens a must-read op-ed detailing Rubio's hypocrisy.

Trying to cover over your anti-immigrant opposition to the DREAM Act, your support for Arizona's racist SB-1070 and other anti-Latino legislation by meeting with one DREAM Act student is cynical and manipulative. As many parents say, "You can't cover the sun with one finger," Mr. Rubio. The majority of Latinos in the United States support the DREAM Act and you don't. I would be ashamed of myself if I was a child of immigrants who supported anti-immigrant legislation and opposed the DREAM Act and other pro-Latino legislation. Ashamed.

Rubio's concern is staying in public office. Rubio may be viewed as a tea party spokesman. The truth is Rubio is a career politician. Rubio has served in government since the nineties. Politicians that stay in the game that long are not couragious. A few emamples.

Rubio ran from his support of the PIPA legislation after the internet blackout protest.

In 2010, Rubio backed BP paying into a restoration fund. Now that the BP spill is out of the news, Rubio feels safe to protect oil interests. Rubio claims that BP paying for the damage.

"It's unfortunate to see a good idea to help people along the Gulf Coast be turned into another Washington tax-and-spend feeding frenzy," Rubio said.

Rubio talks about policy with the depth of Frank Luntz talking points. The good Senator wants you to believe that BP paying for the damage it caused to Florida's beaches is a "tax and spend frenzy." Mr. Rubio, do you know who will pay for the restoration of Gulf Coast beaches, if BP doesn't pay? The taxpayers whom live on the Gulf Coast.

Allen West's Energy Saving Hummer

Rep. Allen West is shocked that his Hummer costs $70.00 to fill-up.

He continued, “This ‘tax policy’ is an example as well as today’s speech on his ‘energy policy’ shall be. Here is the bottom line, last night it took 70 dollars to fill the tank of my 2008 H3 Hummer, what is it costing you? What does it cost the president to fill his gas tank?”

This is West's idea of protesting President Barack Obama's energy efficiency policies. Why would we want to look for cheaper and new sources of fuel when we can burn a hole in our pockets like West. I wonder if West bought his 2008 H3 Hummer for its 15.5 miles per gallon. It's hard to beat that deal.

Why Marco Rubio Loves Oil Tax Subsidies

Sen. Marco Rubio is taking the courageous and fiscally conservative position by planning to vote against the elimination of tax subsidies for oil companies.

"It’s a tax increase. I don’t vote for tax increases," Rubio told the Buzz. "Those are the same subsidies that are available to everybody and every company. I’m interested in lowering gas prices. I’m not interested in wasting time talking about things that aren’t going to help lower people’s gas prices."

Blast from the past: Ed Schultz mocked the stupidity of Rubio saying that deep water drilling is safe. Schultz showed video of Rubio telling Wolf Blitzer this, as a live feed of oil leaking from the Deep Horizon hole leaked into the Gulf.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

The oil and gas industry as donated $196,600 to Rubio since the 2005 election cycle. Oil industry PACs donated $76,750 to his Senate campaign. The Oil PAC contributors is a who's who of the energy industry. With friends like this it is obvious why Rubio won't vote for ending the tax subsidies.

American Gas Assn $1,000
Chevron Corp $10,000
ConocoPhillips $3,000
Devon Energy $10,000
Exxon Mobil $10,000
Halliburton Co $5,000
Independent Petroleum Assn of America $5,000
Koch Industries $10,000
Marathon Oil $5,000
Mid-Continent Oil & Gas Assn $1,000
Murphy Oil $2,000
National Ocean Industries Assn $4,000
Occidental Petroleum $2,000
Spectra Energy $2,500
True Companies $750
Valero Energy $2,500
Williams Companies

Haridopolos Ignorance on Energy Policy

U.S. Senate candidate Mike Haridopolos wants to open up drilling in the Gulf and Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska.

“We need to move away from these rogue dictatorships whether it be in central or South American let alone in the Middle East,” he said. “This is our time to lead by example. We need to open up those new opportunities in the Gulf and ANWR. Four dollars-plus in gasoline are crippling the middle class. This is the biggest tax hike ever, and Obama has pushed this way because we are relying more and more on these folks in the Middle East. America needs to lead by example on energy production and it starts with drilling in places like ANWR, let alone the Gulf of Mexico.”

Haridopolos' position is political suicide in a general election. Crude oil is still washing up on Florida beaches. Bill Nelson has a strong record against offshore drilling and will hammer Haridopolos on his position. However, I doubt Haridopolos will be the Republican nominee.

Read more »

The Gas Commission

Three months from now we won't hear anything about the Gas Commission investigation. Anyone really believes the Justice Department will prosecute an energy company. There hasn't been a major SEC investigation of any of the major financial institutions involved under President Barack Obama's watch. These companies needed bailout money because they hid their losses through off-the-books accounting practices. The New York Federal Reserve withheld announcement of a AIG credit swap exchange with.

"Do you think it might be feasible to hold off on the Maiden Lane III 8K and press release until next week?" Brett Phillips, a New York Fed lawyer wrote in an e-mail [to AIG counsel]. "The thinking is that the Maiden Lane III closing will be a less transparent event, and it might be better to narrow the gap between AIG's announcement and the New York Fed's publication of term sheet summaries."

Former New York Reserve chairman Tim Geithner was paying AIG 100 cent on the dollar of taxpayer money. No interest was charged. Geithner then went on to become Treasury Secretary.

I have no faith in the Obama administration cracking down on energy companies.

Update: another reason I doubt the White House will crack down is because it purposely sent out bogus numbers on the BP spill.

On 4 August, Jane Lubchenco, the NOAA administrator, demanded that the White House issue a correction after it claimed the "vast majority" of BP oil was gone from the Gulf.

A few days earlier, Lisa Jackson, the head of the EPA, and her deputy, Bob Perciasepe, had also objected to the White House estimates of the amount of oil dispersed in the gulf. "these calculations are extremely rough estimates yet when they are put into the press, which we want to happen, they will take a life of their own," Perciasepe wrote.

The financial crisis and Gulf spill gave the White House the opportunity to do the right thing. The White House felt protecting corporate interests is more important than the environment or taxpayers. The Obama administration bleeds neoliberal. People should stop kidding themselves that Team Obama is most concerned about the people.

Scott & Bondi Really Heart BP

I predicted that Gov. Rick Scott and Attorney General Pam Bondi would not sue BP. Turns out my presiction is correct. The Buzz Bondi will let the Wednesday deadline to file a lawsuit against Transocean pass.

Scott is still talking like litigation is still a possibility. Let's make this clear. Scott has no interest in suing Transocean or BP. Apparently, the interests of Transocean are more important than the financial and environmental damage done to Florida. Transocean is not strapped for cash. The executives awarded themselves bonueses for safety. Never mind that workers were killed on the Deep Horizon rig.

Fact: Scott and Bondi have appointed no attorney to handle legal action against BP or Transocean. Attorney Steve Yerrid was appointed by Gov. Charlie Crist to handle litigation. Yerrid was let go when his term expired. Yerrid emailed Scott three times and never received a response. Bondi's office never asked for documents from Yerrid.

Scott and Bondi are going to let a billion dollars slip away. Do you really believe they are no the side of Floridians?

Quote of the Day

"Candy, Candy, in the old days, when you have a war and you win, that nation is yours."

Donald Trump, advocating going into Libya and taking its oil.

Stealing another country's resources is illegal under international law. The oil belongs to the Libyan people. Trump should read article 47 of the Hague Regulations of 1907 before he makes he opens his mouth to CNN's Candy Crowley.

Art. 47. Pillage is formally forbidden.

Update: Donald Trumps attacks Eric Cantor. In the process, Trump accidently reveals that he is using the birther issue for political gain.

TRUMP: "I think it's a very bad thing for Cantor to have done because I'll tell you, people love this issue especially in the Republican Party. And there's something to what we're saying."

Republicans were afraid to dispel the birther conspiracy theory when it first came out. The GOP now has to eat this shit sandwich.

Why Florida Will Get Shafted Out Of BP Compensation Money

Attorney Steve Yerrid was a special council for Gov. Lawton Chiles and got a settlement from tobacco companies. Yerrid was appointed by Governor Charlie Crist to get a legal settlement from BP. Getting that settlement would involve filing a lawsuit. Yerrid's term ended Dec. 31, 2010. Yerrid sent three letters to Gov. Rick Scott. Yerrid never received a response.

"I received zero response," the Tampa attorney said. "Not a thank you, not a note telling me where to put the materials."

Scott announced receiving $30 million grant from BP. Yerrid says that Florida could get $1 billion from a lawsuit.

Attorney General Pam Bondi has counciled Gov. Rick Scott not to sue BP. Bondi claims that BP will not pay if Florida if litigation is fired against the oil company. How Bondi thinks BP will pay for environmental or tourism damage without legal pressure is beside the point. The truth is Bondi has no desire to sue BP. Bondi has gotten on the same page as Gov. Rick Scott.

"My goal is to try to work with BP and make sure we don't end up in litigation," Scott told the media.

Read more »

Bonuses at Transocean

Transocean is the owner of the Deep Horizon oil rig. 13 workers on the Deep Horizon rig were killed. Millions of barrels of oil were killed. Wild life died because of the environmental damage. Coastal tourism declined because of tourists staying away from Florida. Which means it is time for Transocean to award its top five executives with safety bonuses.

A table in the SEC filing shows bonuses awarded to Steven Newman, Ricardo Rosa, Eric Brown,Arnaud A.Y. Bobillier, Ihab M. Toma and Cheryl Richard. Transocean tells the SEC if you forget that pesky Deep Horizon explosion, it was a great year for safety.

notwithstanding the tragic loss of life in the Gulf of Mexico, we achieved an exemplary statistical safety record as measured by our total recordable incident rate ("TRIR") and total potential severity rate ("TPSR"). As measured by these standards, we recorded the best year in safety performance in our Company's history, which is a reflection on our commitment to achieving an incident free environment, all the time, everywhere.

The executives are also getting a raise for a job well done. One can not live on corporate bonus money alone.

Mr. Newman - $900,000

Mr. Rosa(1) - $450,000

Mr. Brown - $468,000

Mr. Bobillier(1) - $392,000

Ms. Richard - $355,000


This brings failing upwardly to a new level.

Douche Bag of the Day: Jeff Goldstein

Jeff Goldstein accuses Obama of manufacturing "an environmental crisis." Was all the oil and workers killed on the Deep Horizen rig manufactured. I suppose Goldstein will blame Obama for threats and personal information about progressive bloggers posted on Protein Wisdom.

Actually, what the BP spill evidently taught you is that you could manufacture an environmental crisis, shake down a private company, cite false authority to get a drilling moratorium, withstand the consequences of having that massaging of the facts revealed to the public, and — after a “shellacking” at the polls — continue business as usual, depressing the economies of several states, keeping gas prices artificially high, and helping out international companies who are happy to fill the vacuum created by this cynical maneuvering disguised as environmental solicitousness.

Facts:

13 workers on the Deep Horizon rig were killed.

6,814 dead animals.

6,104 dead birds.

609 dead sea turtles.

100 dead dolphins.

The death caused by the spill was not manufactured by Obama. BP did not follow proper safety guidelines. Obama is not responsible for BP dumping sand to hide spills on beaches. None of this matters to Goldstein. There is no deep policy analysis to be found on Protein Wisdom. The blog is a place where Goldstein can safely attack others. If Goldstein behaved in a public establishment the way he behaved on the internet he would get his ass kicked. I tremble in fear at the prospect of Goldstein sicking the 101st Keyboard Brigade on me.

Bill Nelson On White House Cover Up of Spill

Bill Nelson rips the White House a new one for lowballing estimates of oil released into the Gulf from the Deep Horizen accident. The White House is getting ripped by a member of the Democratic caucus. Notice Lindsay Graham they courted on the energy bill is not coming to the White House's rescue. Neither is BP or other energy companies.

BILL NELSON: If it's true then there is no excuse that the Office of Management and Budget would try to muzzle the truth.

White House Lowballed BP Oil Damage

Embarrassing but not surprising. A panel appointed by President Barack Obama found that the White House blocked efforts by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to get up to date information on the Deep Horizon oil spill. The findings of the report are not surprising. After the Obama announced there was no more oil in the water there were eyewitness reports of oil sightings. At one point the White House told the public 210,000 gallons of oil was being released per day from the spill. The Coast Guard was operating under the assumption that the spill was releasing 2.7 million to 4.6 million gallons per day. This information was kept from the public. The White House is now denying its own commissioned report.

"I would very much doubt that anyone would put restrictions on NOAA's ability to articulate factual information," said Jerry Miller, head of the White House science office's ocean subcommittee.

Sen. Bill Nelson has long been an opponent of offshore drilling. Nelson expressed his dissatisfaction to St. Petersburg Times editorial board.

“It’s inexcusable,” Nelson said during a visit to the St. Petersburg Times editorial board Thursday.

Nelson was publicly critical of President Obama's plan to allow offshore drilling on the Eastern Gulf.

"No drilling off Florida, period," Nelson said in a press release.

BP and PACs set up by the energy company contributed $2.89 million to Obama's presidential campaign. To say that the White House's refusal to release accurate information to the public on the extent of the spill has nothing to do with BP America's campaign contributions is naivette.

Another Oil Rig Accident

The platform of the Vermilion Oil rig 380 off the coast of Louisiana exploded. No deaths or injuries were reported. All 13 crew members have been evacuated. The rig was not part of the moratorium placed by President Barack Obama after the Deep Horizon accident. Interior Secretary Kenneth would not comment on if the Vermilion Oil rig 380 accident will cause the President to lengthen the mortorium.

Reuters reports the fire was not caused by a drilling blowout. The fire has been put out and the rig is still standing. Two of the decks on the rig have fire damage.

I remember Lindsey Graham saying he would not vote for the energy bill because there was not enough offshore drilling. Graham argued that the BP spill made it a bad time to work on clean energy legislation. It is hard to argue with that kind of logic.

Update: According to Coast Guard Cmdr. Cheri Ben-Iesau no traces of oil have been found in the water. Let's hope it stays that way.

BP Disaster Not Over

Contrary to what BP and the Obama administration want you to believe there is still oil in the water. Linda Young took a picture of the yellow water off the coast of Navarre Beach, Floria. Anybody care to swim in this water?

The Oil Crisis:Next Steps For Tampa

St. Petersburg College will host "The Oil Crisis: Next Steps For Tampa." The event is a discussion on what should be done after the Deep Horizon oil spill. There will be a Q & A session with the panelists.

The Panel

Joseph A. Boudrow, Commander U.S. Coast Guard

Henry E. Barnet, Florida Department of Environmental Protection

G. Alan Farmer, RCRA Divion U.S. EPA Region 4

Neil Brown, St. Petersburg Times editor

Ray Dempsey, BP

Time: Aug. 18, 2010
6:00pm - 8:00pm

Location: SPC Seminole Campus
9200 133th Street North
Seminole, FL

Special Session Proves Republicans Refuse to Govern

Darden Rice correctly points out that until recently offshore drilling was a third rail subject in Florida.

Prudence and caution has always been the responsible approach, not putting our coasts at risk. Until recently, Florida had wisely benefited from strong bipartisan legislative and administrative support for coastal protection from drilling for 25 years. The recent partisan sniping is not the historical norm for such an important issue that could put a stake in the heart of our tourism industry. We need a constitutional amendment as a safe backup system for coastal protection to remove this issue from the shaky vicissitudes of partisan politics.

What has change is the Republican Party's state and national trend to increasing ignore voters. Republicans used to do some things right. Richard Nixon cfreated the EPA and Teddy Roosevelt was a staunch conservationist. The current Republican Party is ruled by their lobbyists.

The Tea Party movement was astroturfed. The Tea Party draws voters who are already conservative Republicans. The GOP hears no voice accept corporate fundraising money. Republicans saw George W. Bush ignore the concern of voters and get re-elected. In Florida, the Democrats cannot raise enough money to compete with Republicans.

Cannon, one of the biggest players in fighting the redistricting amendments, faces perhaps the most organized Democratic challenger in labor-backed Amy Mercado, but he had raised a whopping $661,000 through last March compared to her $22,700.

Dorworth also has a Democratic challenger in educator and former Sentinel news assistant Steve Barnes, who had raised $15,000 through March. But Dorworth had amassed $107,000, and used a separate political committee called Citizens for an Enterprising Democracy to raise another $134,000.

The Florida Democratic Party deserves much blame for a history of disorganization. The Republican dominance has produced a legislature to dysfunctional to address a constitutional ban against offshore drilling or the need for tax breaks for businesses hurt by the Deep Horizon disaster.