Rep. Joe Barton (R) from Texas had his rant this morning, DEFENDING BP and stating they are getting a shakedown for forking over 20B in a fund for the Gulf.
I wonder how the Gulf Coast residents feel. The many damaged and harmed for YEARS to come due to BP's cutting corners and working on a rig that obviously WAS NOT SAFE.
We do need to know what happened. BP needs to pay for this. Look at the map below. As long as that oil is spilling in the Gulf, which will be ALL DAMN SUMMER LONG, the Florida coast line will be DESTROYED, along with all the other states in the Gulf.
We are talking about DAMAGE to a major part of the United States for DECADES and this gas bag congressman is up on Capital Hill SHILLIN' for BP.
The the hell with BP and the plane they road in here on. Barack Obama was RIGHT in forcing them to fork over money up front, with no cap, because the way it looks 20B will not be NEARLY enough to fix this mess in the Gulf.
I am sorry but most Americans do not have any sympathy for BP.
"What is shameful is that Joe Barton seems to have more concern for big corporations that caused this disaster than the fishermen, small business owners and communities whose lives have been devastated by the destruction. Congressman Barton may think that a fund to compensate these Americans is a 'tragedy', but most Americans know that the real tragedy is what the men and women of the Gulf Coast are going through right now. Members from both parties should repudiate his comments."
BP agrees to 20B from the jump. Is 20B enough? Absolutely, NOT. We are talking about BP lying about the actually oil spill from day one. We are talking about not having enough haz-mat suits for folks dealing with that crude. We are talking about an economy in that region, which has reached to Florida, which will impact them for YEARS, not just this year, YEARS.
Also, 100M is set aside for unemployed oil workers in that region because while the environment is being destroyed, they still want to drill for oil.
Following a meeting with the President of the United States, the BP Board announces an agreed package of measures to meet its obligations as a responsible party arising from the Deepwater Horizon spill.
Agreement was reached to create a $20bn claims fund over the next three and a half years on the following basis:
• BP will initially make payments of $3bn in Q3 of 2010 and $2bn in Q4 of 2010. These will be followed by a payment of $1.25bn per quarter until a total of $20bn has been paid in.
• While the fund is building, BP's commitments will be assured by the setting aside of U.S. assets with a value of $20bn. The intention is that this level of assets will decline as cash contributions are made to the fund.
• The fund will be available to satisfy legitimate claims including natural resource damages and state and local response costs. Fines and penalties will be excluded from the fund and paid separately. Payments from the fund will be made as they are adjudicated, whether by the Independent Claims Facility (ICF) referred to below, or by a court, or as agreed by BP.
• The ICF will be administered by Ken Feinberg. The ICF will adjudicate on all Oil Pollution Act and tort claims excluding all federal and state claims.
• Any money left in the fund once all legitimate claims have been resolved and paid will revert to BP.
The fund does not represent a cap on BP liabilities, but will be available to satisfy legitimate claims. Further and more detailed terms regarding the establishment and operation of the claims fund and the ICF will be finalized and announced as soon as possible.
Big news, BP will not pay out dividends for the rest of the year. Shareholders take a hit.
President Obama's remarks to the agreement:
BP Chairman of the Board, Carl Henric Svanberg and catch his phrase of caring about the SMALL PEOPLE:
The independent fund for damage claims will be directed by lawyer Kenneth Feinberg, who oversaw payments to families of victims of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. At present, Feinberg is known as Obama's "pay czar," setting salary limits for companies getting the most aid from a $700 billion government bailout fund.
The $20 billion is not a cap — if legitimate claims outstrip that amount, then BP will required to pay more. A three-person panel will decide appeals of rejected claims.
Those Some believe everything Obama says is gold and those some that criticize him for being lackluster.
But tonight. I expected some specifics, I wanted a WIN, but got an inspiring, la-de-da speech.
Nothing of specifics.
Now if I missed the absolute specifics, then clue me in.
This speech did not go into specifics of anything.
And if anyone wants to know what someone looks like in the bubble, we saw it tonight. I mean, damn, he did not say anything!!! I did not expect everything but some specifics on SOMETHING!!!
Yes, we heard a third party to process claims in the Gulf. But how much will BP give to the Gulf Escrow Fund? And notice, he did not use the word ESCROW!!! And we still don't know about how MUCH FROM BP.
Yes, he gave a time line of what his administration DID, but who cares about that!!!
And yes, he told us we need to get off fossil fuels. We heard that speech before, but HOW. He did not even say he was going to get on CONGRESS for letting an energy bill just sit there for months!!
I pray to God, that what is happening in the background is worth it for this country in the end, because what I just listened to was nothing.
He said nothing.
If Keith Olbermann, rips Barack Obama, you know he doesn't get it. Words will not save him, not after this. Until his behavior changes, until some asses get kicked out of the White House, he still won't get it.
Oh, one thing he did state that a new person to take over MMS, while praising the lame and sorry, Ken Salazar. Oh another thing, from the scroll bar on MSNBC and CNN the new oil flow rate, changed how many times? It is now 65,000 barrels a day. WHOOT!!!! Damn we went from 1,000 barrels a day for weeks to 5,000 barrels a day for other weeks to snatch a number out of my ass to finally a real estimate!!! I am so excited!!!
Barack Obama squandered time for his Oval Office speech for what? Nothing.
I will put the video up when it is available and I am sure that will be soon.
Update [2010-6-15 21:4:58 by icebergslim]:
Now Rachel going after him and that speech, nicely. sigh.
Are you tired of depending on oil, yet? What will it take? All of our state's coastlines destroyed because these oil companies continue to LIE about safety and are CLUELESS on clean up? Should we continue to let them RUIN our country with toxic crude? We should be TIRED of this.
But, when you listen to Blue Dog Democrats, wanting Republican votes you get what we got in the stimulus package. A compromised package that many economic experts said from the very beginning was not enough money. And we won't even get into the stimulus package creating jobs, it did not, it saved the very jobs for a short time, that now the White House needs more money to save again.
President Obama urged reluctant lawmakers Saturday to quickly approve nearly $50 billion in emergency aid to state and local governments, saying the money is needed to avoid "massive layoffs of teachers, police and firefighters" and to support the still-fragile economic recovery.
In a letter to congressional leaders, Obama defended last year's huge economic stimulus package, saying it helped break the economy's freefall, but argued that more spending is urgent and unavoidable. "We must take these emergency measures," he wrote in an appeal aimed primarily at members of his own party.
The letter comes as rising concern about the national debt is undermining congressional support for additional spending to bolster the economy. Many economists say more spending could help bring down persistently high unemployment, but with Republicans making an issue of the record deficits run up during the recession, many Democratic lawmakers are eager to turn off the stimulus tap.
Turn off the stimulus tap? The tap was on low from the very beginning and is at semi-trickle, now, at best.
We are reading, hearing in our communities the record number of jobs being cut from our schools. We know the classrooms are becoming increasingly large and record numbers of schools are being closed, permanently.
Does the Obama White House need the money? Yes, but it is hard to go back to the same well, twice. It is that old saying when you negotiate for a job income. Ask for everything, including the kitchen sink, upfront because then you know that once you are hired it is hard to tap that well again for even a descent raise hike. We know this.
So, for the Obama White House asking for that money with everything going on, getting that money will be very difficult, especially in a mid term election year. In the reality, it should not be difficult because we control congress, but look what that control bought us. nuff said.
Which brings me to that Obama White House behavior, thingy....
We can argue until the cows come home on who needs to be removed from the Obama White House. I have harped on the horrendous communication, messaging since last summer; my friend thinks the political portion of the White House needs to go, but in the end a major shake is needed.
Barack Obama will address the nation on Tuesday, reportedly from the Oval Office. This will be his first time, the topic? The Gulf Coast. I said weeks ago that this needed to be done. Why? Because this White House needs to reassure this country who is in charge and obviously for the longest, many believe it is BP. Correctional things also need to be addressed, especially the lack of man power for clean up in this region. How is that? The people that live in the Gulf Coast region are complaining about this and camera crews have shown the lack of man power all over the Gulf Coast. Communication really needs to be narrowed down to ONE PERSON addressing the Gulf Coast. During Hurricane Katrina the Bush Administration came away with the one person in charge and you knew who it was, Lt. General Russel Honore. When he spoke, people listened and knew he was speaking on authority and from the White House. We don't have that in the Gulf. Many will state Thad Allen is there, but Thad Allen has made many snafus. He may be a better on the ground person but on camera a stronger presence is needed. And address people not getting claims paid. We are talking about the beginning of many more in the millions on the unemployment roll for quite some time, but in the meantime need relief NOW. As, President Obama addressed BP nickel and diming folks, he needs to put that flame on their arse to make them sign and mail checks out to folks.
All of the above is about several things but in the end it comes out to whom the hell is in charge down there. That is why whatever Barack Obama says on Tuesday he must back it up with action, meaning things on the ground MUST CHANGE. Clean up in that region must be on FAST TRACK. People need to get their claims paid and it must be REGULARLY.
Barack Obama does not need to come on television blathering about what can be done, what he hopes to be done, what may be done but what WILL BE DONE. And if he can not back this up with action that people can SEE, he is wasting television time. People are mad out here, not only in the Gulf but across this country while looking at slow action in oil cleanup and anger at the continued nonsense from BP.
Finally, whoever is advising the President, for me, has not done him justice. If we learned anything from Hurricane Katrina, it was that the Commander in Chief needs to be on the scene day one, he needs to communicate from the power of strength (repeatedly) and that no one should question who is in charge of anything. What is going on now in the White House is all about running after a message that has run a muck. A message that I hope they catch, because no one believes this White House is in charge of what is happening in the Gulf Coast region. I am hoping that part of what President Obama has to say is about a huge Gulf Coast Relief Package with the open option if oil gets in the loop current, BP must also take care of the Florida coast along with portions of the Eastern Seaboard of the United States. We don't want to see this happening but it is a hard reality while we watch oil being pumped into the Gulf for the rest of the summer. It is also encouraging that President Obama is already demanding that BP set up a Damage Fund.
President Barack Obama will demand that BP PLC create a special reserve account to pay for damages caused by the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, as the administration continued to push the company to act more aggressively to contain the spill.
White House adviser David Axelrod, speaking on NBC's "Meet the Press" Sunday, said Mr. Obama would discuss the issue in a Wednesday meeting with BP officials, including Chairman Carl-Henric Svanberg, after the president returns from a trip to assess cleanup efforts in Alabama, Mississippi and Florida on Monday and Tuesday.
The boot on BP's neck must be encrusted with cement for years to come. The demand of what they must do, must come from the White House and this is for years to come. And any criminal liablity? That must be prosecuted to the fullest extent and BP must deal with that for years to come. No one believes BP will make every individual whole again, it will be decades to bring the Gulf Coast back and maybe longer for the marine life to re-engage, but we must never allow any company to take advantage of the us, the United States citizens, ever again.
And Obama White House? ACTION SPEAKS LOUDER THAN WORDS. We are and will be looking.....
you would know that the chain of command here is completely f-ed up. Requests for preventive measures are hitting brick walls and getting lost in red tape. We want to see action and are being denied that at every turn when ideas and requests start moving through the 'proper' channels.
icebergslim is absolutely correct. We DO NOT want to hear what has been done, we want to hear what is being done and what will be done immediately.
You may think this diary is another 'blogger-in-chief' diary, but this isn't about political strategy, this is about a man-made disaster that needs immediate results.
There's one thing those of us on the coast DO NOT want and that's for this disaster to turn into a political game. We are only asking for results and are not getting them.
Barack Obama's White House need to fix this. Those residents on Tuesday expect to hear ACTION not what has been done, should be done, may be done, but WILL BE DONE.
Update [2010-6-13 15:49:22 by icebergslim]:
The following is Meet the Press. I hate David Gregory, but David Axelrod is on in the very early segment. This is why communication and FACES of communication from the White House needs to change. Axelrod was wonderful during the campaign, but in the White House he has been a horrible messenger.
In other words, if you have a family with 2 kids and wifey, you have to pay the WHOLE BILL while unemployed, um, around $1500.00 a month and much of this coming from Obama's own party, those lovely conservative Democrats, you know the type like Blanche Lincoln that we have to SAVE by any means necessary. Arm twisting needs to be a PRE-REQUISITE before assuming office.
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