Democrat presses Enron links to Cheney
Associated Press
Dec. 4, 2001 | WASHINGTON --
A Democratic congressman on Tuesday urged Vice President Dick Cheney to disclose details of any meetings between executives of financially stricken Enron Corp. and the White House.
Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., said Enron executives who contributed heavily to President Bush's campaign may have exerted "significant influence" on the energy plan formulated by Cheney's task force last spring.
In a dispute that began in April, Cheney has refused to tell congressional Democrats which power industry executives and lobbyists met with the task force. The panel recommended expanded oil and gas drilling on public land and a rejuvenated nuclear power system.
"In light of Enron's financial failure, you should reconsider your insistence on secrecy," Waxman, the ranking Democrat on the House Government Reform Committee, wrote the vice president.
"It is appropriate to ask whether Enron communicated to you or others affiliated with your task force information about its precarious financial position," Waxman wrote. "This is especially important since this information was apparently hidden from investors and the public until quite recently."
Waxman said the task force's conclusions "may have been influenced by unreliable data or opinions provided by Enron."
David Addington, counsel to the vice president, said, "We have received the congressman's letter. We will review it and respond appropriately to the congressman."
The General Accounting Office, the investigative arm of Congress, has been considering suing the Bush White House over its refusal to identify whom it met with on the energy plan.
The White House says meetings of the president and vice president don't require public disclosure.
The energy task force has reported that it had nine meetings and that staffers met with many others to gather data. Environmental groups complained that the Bush White House shut them out of the process.
Enron chairman Ken Lay donated $250,000 to the Republican Party during Bush's run for president and raised at least $100,000 for Bush from other donors.
Waxman said that one official on the energy task force, chief economic adviser Lawrence Lindsay, served on an Enron advisory board last year. Lindsay received $50,000 from Enron, according to his financial disclosure form for 2000.
Another top White House official, Karl Rove, owned $68,000 worth of Enron stock when he spoke to Lay about a prospective appointee to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
During the phone call with Rove, Lay touted Pennsylvania utilities regulator Nora Brownell to fill a slot on the energy commission. The White House says Bush had already decided to pick Brownell at the time of Lay's call with Rove. |
