Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Politics : President Barack Obama -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: ChinuSFO who wrote (78654)	6/22/2010 3:05:39 PM
From: stockman_scott	Respond to of 149317

BP Adds Lobbyists With Gulf Lawmaker Ties to Washington Team By Jim Snyder and Kristin Jensen June 22 (Bloomberg) -- BP Plc., coping with congressional investigations and criticism over its oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, added lobbyists with ties to lawmakers from the region to the company’s growing team of Washington advisers. Eris Group registered with Congress to lobby on energy and environment issues in May, according to records made public on June 18. Jennifer Bendall, a former policy adviser to Republican Senator Richard Shelby of Alabama, and Jesse McCollum, a former chief of staff to Democratic Representative Ron Klein of Florida, are representing BP within the Eris Group. The firm’s regional connections bolster a BP lobbying network that includes Ken Duberstein, a former chief of staff to President Ronald Reagan; Tony Podesta, brother of John Podesta, who managed President Barack Obama’s transition team; and Hilary Rosen, a former head of the Recording Industry Association of America who once worked for Democratic Senator Dianne Feinstein of California. “Lobbyists are very effective at influencing public policy,” said Craig Holman of Public Citizen, a Washington- based advocacy group. “The most effective are people who have direct ties with government officials in Congress or in the administration.” Thirty-five of the 49 lobbyists who have worked for BP since 2009 have worked for the federal government, according to Public Citizen. BP and President Barack Obama agreed June 16 that the company will create a $20 billion fund for claims from the spill that followed an April 20 explosion on the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig in the gulf. BP Chief Executive Officer Tony Hayward was accused of “stonewalling” by Representative Henry Waxman, a California Democrat when he told lawmakers at a hearing on June 17 that he had no knowledge of decisions made before the explosion. ‘Boutique’ Lobbying The Eris group, which calls itself “a boutique government consulting firm” on its website, notified the offices of Shelby and Klein that it was representing BP and hasn’t lobbied the lawmakers on the company’s behalf, according to Shelby spokesman Jonathan Graffeo and Klein spokeswoman Melissa Silverman. Shelby said June 20 that Hayward should step down after attending a yacht race in the United Kingdom. Shelby called the move as the spill continues “the height of stupidity” in comments on the CBS program “Face the Nation.” BP spent more than $3.5 million lobbying Congress and the administration during the first three months of the year, the latest records available. The London-based company spent almost $16 million in 2009, ranking it among the biggest spenders in Washington. Transocean, Nalco Transocean Ltd., the Swiss company that owned the Deepwater Horizon rig, has retained Capitol Hill Consulting Group, a firm started by former Representative Bill Brewster, a Democrat from Oklahoma. Jack Victory, who served as an energy adviser to former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, a Texas Republican, is also lobbying for Transocean. Nalco Holding Co., of Naperville, Illinois, which manufacturers a chemical dispersant whose use by BP in the spill was questioned by the Environmental Protection Agency, hired Ogilvy Government Relations in Washington. Drew Maloney, who also was an aide to DeLay, and Gordon Taylor, who worked for former Representative Chris John, a Democrat from Louisiana, are lobbying for Nalco. To contact the reporters on this story: Jim Snyder in Washington at jsnyder24@bloomberg.net; Kristin Jensen in Washington at kjensen@bloomberg.net. Last Updated: June 22, 2010 13:38 EDT

To: ChinuSFO who wrote (78654)	6/22/2010 4:09:27 PM
From: tejek	Respond to of 149317

Judge who overturned drilling moratorium reported owning stock in drilling companies The federal judge who overturned Barack Obama's offshore drilling moratorium appears to own stock in numerous companies involved in the offshore oil industry—including Transocean, which leased the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig to BP prior to its April 20 explosion in the Gulf of Mexico—according to 2008 financial disclosure reports. U.S. District Judge Martin Feldman issued a preliminary injunction today barring the enforcement of Barack Obama's proposed six-month moratorium on deepwater drilling, arguing that the ban is too broad. According to Feldman's 2008 financial disclosure form, posted online by Judicial Watch [pdf], the judge owned stock in Transocean, as well as five other companies that are either directly or indirectly involved in the offshore drilling business. It's not surprising that Feldman, who is a judge for the Eastern District of Louisiana, has invested in the offshore drilling business—an AP investigation found earlier this month that more than half the federal judges in the districts affected by the BP spill have financial ties to the oil and gas industry. The report discloses that in 2008, Judge Feldman held less than $15,000 worth of stock in Transocean, as well as similar amounts—federal rules only require that judges report a range of values—in Hercules Offshore, ATP Oil and Gas, and Parker Drilling. All of those companies offer contract offshore drilling services and operate offshore rigs in the Gulf of Mexico. Judge Feldman also owned between $15,000 and $50,000 in notes offered by Ocean Energy, Inc., a company that offers "concept design and manufacturing design of submersible drilling rigs," according to its web site. None of the companies were direct parties to the lawsuit seeking to overturn the ban. Judge Feldman did not immediately return a message seeking comment. —John Cook is a senior national reporter/blogger for Yahoo! News news.yahoo.com