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June 2, 2010, 2:55 pm
By
Jordan Fabian
BP CEO Tony Hayward apologized Wednesday for saying recently that he wants his "life back." Discussing the Gulf of Mexico oil spill over the weekend, the embattled oil executive said,
"We're sorry for the massive disruption it's caused their lives.
There's no one who wants this over more than I do. I would like my life
back." Hayward came under fire for making the comment at a time when BP is trying without success to contain the oil that's gushing from the company's blown-out well.
Read more...
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E2-Wire
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June 2, 2010, 2:10 pm
By
J. Taylor Rushing
Florida Gov. Charlie Crist said the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico has abruptly "changed the appetite" for oil drilling in the waters that surround his state.
Crist told The Hill this week that he has toured the oil spill "eight or nine times," and signed several state-of-emergency declarations in response to the spill. He toured the spill again with President Barack Obama on Friday, and said the close-up views have convinced him not to support any oil drilling in the Gulf.
“For anybody, regardless of what your party is, if this doesn’t give you pause, nothing would,” he said. “I think it’s really changed the appetite, if you will, as it relates to oil drilling certainly in the Gulf of Mexico. The concern after going out to Louisiana the other day and seeing the oil on the shore, I mean, it's just devastating to see. I know that energy independence is incredibly important to all of us, but I think we have to evaluate how we do it, and try to have a greater focus on renewable [energy] and greener types of technology — you know, solar, wind, nuclear, natural gas — the kinds of things that would be less impactful as it relates to, you know, a potentially devastating effect on our environment."
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June 2, 2010, 12:28 pm
By
Ben Geman
Obama will vow Wednesday to personally corral Senate
votes for a sweeping climate change and energy bill.
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E2-Wire
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June 2, 2010, 12:20 pm
By
Erika Niedowski and Jordan Fabian
The oil slick is just miles from Florida's coast and has made landfall
in parts of Alabama and Mississippi.
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Energy & Environment, E2-Wire
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June 2, 2010, 11:23 am
By
Ben Geman
The League of Conservation Voters is trying to tether Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.) to “big oil” – and BP in particular – in a final push on behalf of Lt. Gov. Bill Halter (D), whom the group is supporting in Tuesday’s Democratic primary runoff.
The group on Wednesday launched a new TV ad that highlights Lincoln’s receipt of oil-and-gas industry political donations and her vote for 2006 legislation that expanded drilling in the Gulf of Mexico.
“Maybe she got that money because she helped Bush and Cheney give oil companies $14 billion in tax breaks,” the ad states. “Or because she voted to allow risky offshore drilling for BP and their friends.”
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E2-Wire
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June 2, 2010, 8:20 am
By
Jordan Fabian
Louisiana Rep. Melancon (D) on Wednesday called for the
firing of Tony Hayward in the wake of the massive oil spill.
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E2-Wire
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June 2, 2010, 7:29 am
By
Ben Geman
Justice Department’s criminal probe of the oil spill raises tricky questions
As we reported Tuesday, Attorney General Eric Holder revealed that the Justice Department has launched both civil and criminal probes of the oil spill.
The Wall Street Journal reports that the inquiry presents thorny legal and political issues for the Obama administration. “A decision not to prosecute — or to settle out of court — could expose the White House to more criticism from the Gulf region and others calling for a hard line on BP,” the Journal reports.
“'Any criminal fraud case could also be complicated by the notion that it appears the government signed off on many of the moves that may have led to the spill,' said Noah Hall, a law professor at Wayne State University Law School in Detroit who has worked on behalf of environmental groups in the past.”
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June 2, 2010, 12:41 am
By
Bob Cusack
George W. Bush's former press secretary defended the Obama administration Tuesday on its handling of the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
During an appearance on Sean Hannity's show on Fox News, Dana Perino said, "I think that we are expecting a little bit too much of the administration. I'm not fully defending their response, but I do think President Obama can't don a snorkeling outfit and do it himself."
During a panel discussion, Perino disputed the notion that the Obama administration is sitting on its hands. "I disagree. I mean, they have stepped it up...What can be done?" She added, "Nobody knows how to deal with it." Perino said she questioned Attorney General Eric Holder's involvement in opening a criminal probe of BP, and said the Obama administration should have acted more swiftly to address the environmental disaster. "I'm not defending them for their slow response initially, but I do think at the moment they are trying to do what they can," she said.
Archived under:
E2-Wire
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June 1, 2010, 9:59 pm
By
Ben Geman
Attorney General Eric Holder said the Justice Department
is reviewing whether laws were broken.
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E2-Wire
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June 1, 2010, 4:28 pm
By
Michael O'Brien
The U.S. government has launched a formal criminal and civil
investigation into the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, Attorney
General Eric Holder said Tuesday.
Holder said during a trip to
New Orleans that the government was reviewing whether BP and federal
regulators had violated federal laws in the lead-up to the explosion of
a BP-leased rig in April, which triggered the massive, ongoing oil
spill.
"We will make certain that those responsible clean up the
mess they have made and restore or replace the natural resources lost
or injured in this tragedy," Holder said in his remarks. "And we will
prosecute to the full extent any violations of the law."
Holder
delivered his remarks following a meeting in Louisiana with prosecutors
from Gulf Coast regions, which have been affected by the aftermath of
the ecological disaster.
"[A]s we have said all along, we must
also ensure that anyone found responsible for this spill is held
accountable," Holder said. "That means enforcing the appropriate civil
— and if warranted, criminal — authorities to the full extent of the
law." A number of lawmakers in Congress had begun clamoring in
recent weeks for a formal criminal probe into the spill. One Louisiana
lawmaker, Rep. Charlie Melancon (D), suggested Tuesday that federal
regulators had acted criminally in granting waivers from environmental
law to BP for the rig it had leased.
President Barack Obama had
also raised the prospect of criminal charges for BP earlier today after
meeting with the co-chairman of the commission he'd appointed to
investigate the accident.
"If our laws were broken, leading to
this death and destruction, my solemn pledge is that we will bring
those responsible to justice on behalf of the victims of this
catastrophe and the people of the Gulf region," the president said.
Holder
said that Justice Department attorneys were investigating violations to
the Clean Water Act, the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, the Migratory Bird
Treaty Act, the Endangered Species Act and other criminal statutes.
Many of those laws carry both civil and criminal penalties.
"If
we find evidence of illegal behavior, we will be forceful in our
response. We have already instructed all relevant parties to preserve
any documents that may shed light on the facts surrounding this
disaster," said the attorney general. "As our review expands in the
days ahead, we will be meticulous, we will be comprehensive, and we
will be aggressive. We will not rest until justice is done." Cross-posted from the Briefing Room.
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