Gulf oil spill: Partisan politics over $20-billion escrow fund

Even at a congressional hearing where a big oil company has already been targeted as the principal villain, partisan politics between Republicans and Democrats was never far from the surface.

Though castigating BP Chief Executive Tony Hayward and his company’s actions over the Gulf of Mexico oil spill was the main goal of the day for the House Energy and Commerce Committee, Democrats and Republicans on the panel sparred over the $20-billion escrow fund the company and the Obama administration agreed on Wednesday to establish to aid victims of the disaster.

“I’m ashamed of what happened at the White House” on Wednesday, Rep. Joe Barton (R-Texas) said of the agreement, calling it a shakedown.

Rep. Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) quickly rose to the fund’s defense. “It’s not a slush fund, not a shakedown,” he said. “It was the government of the United States working to protect the most vulnerable citizens that we have in our country right now, the residents of the gulf.”

“It's BP's spill,” Markey said, “but it is America's ocean, and it is America's citizens who are being harmed. … No, this is not a shakedown of the company. … This is, in my opinion, the American government working at its best.”

-- Michael Muskal

Twitter.com/LATimesmuskal

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Comments

[TS in SD]

People like Barton seem to forget they are elected to represent the people of our great nation, not greedy corporations who pay them to turn a blind eye to their wanton disregard for our nation's energy reserves, its people, wildlife and local economies. We send $24.9 billion a month to foreign nations -- many of them hostile to American interests -- to sate our addiction to oil. Our President should apologize to BP for holding them accountable when they have abused the privilege people like Barton afforded them to get rich on America's oil reserves? American lives were lost, American soil has been sullied and America's small businesses -- the backbone of our great nation -- devastated because BP renegged on its commitments to operate safely... to gorge their already-bloated coffers. Isn't our country's interests worth more than the tens of thousands of dollars politicians like Barton take to betray them? Texans more than most understand the need for domestic sources of clean energy. Barton should be tossed out of office for drowning American interests in a vat of deep, deadly goo.

[American Patriot]

One MORE reason why I am now an independent and no longer lean to an R.
Barton is a bought & paid for hack or daft if he can't see that an escrow fund allows damages to be paid much quicker than would be paid AFTER the endless legal wrangling. And it ensures that money for damages is in hand - not promised. We need to stop all the anti-BP posturing and spend the effort on constructively stopping the flow and cleaning up with the help of the BP fund (assuming PB actually ponies up the 20B.) D's & R's It's my hope that you see a November to Remember.

[LOCICALLY SPEAKING]

i'd like to hear an explanation from obama as to why he rejected Copenhagen's offer to use their skimmers in the initial days of this spill. that preventitive measure would have prevented this oil from getting even near our wetlands. he also rejected England's help. this is very puzzling.

was it because he didnt take an oil spill in the gulf seriously? i really want to hear this tabled and understand the mindset as to why these offers of help were ignored.

[pan3686]

Barton, you're a dirtbag. I bet you wouldn't be saying the same thing if the spill affected your Texas constituents the way it has affected the people of Louisiana. Not everything has to be about partisan politics. BP screwed up big time and it's perfectly reasonable that it should pay for its mistakes.