Sen. Landrieu Named To BP Ten As One of Top Big Oil Money Recipients
For Immediate Release
Contact:
Scott Baumgartner, [email protected], 202-222-0751
Kelly Trout, [email protected], 202-222-0722
Sen. Landrieu Named To ‘BP Ten’ As One of Top Big Oil Money Recipients
Sen. Landrieu denies Friends of the Earth’s request to donate oil money to Gulf recovery effort, helps perpetuate the undue influence of oil companies in Washington
WASHINGTON, D.C. — As millions of gallons of crude oil continue to hemorrhage daily into the Gulf of Mexico, the environmental watchdog group Friends of the Earth last week launched a campaign to pressure members of Congress, including Senator Mary Landrieu (D-La.) to donate the cash they’ve received from BP and other oil companies to Gulf Coast recovery efforts.
Sen. Landrieu has received $329,100 in campaign contributions from oil companies in the last two election cycles, $16,200 of which came from BP alone. She was the top recipient of BP money in the 2008 campaign cycle among candidates running for the U.S. House or Senate. In total, Big Oil has spent $48,401,891 to curry favor from politicians in the 2008 and 2010 election cycles.
Friends of the Earth President Erich Pica had the following statement:
“For years, Sen. Landrieu has worked to protect the dirty energy status quo to the detriment of her constituents. She remains a staunch supporter of offshore drilling, despite the fact that her home state is bearing the brunt of the environmental destruction, devastation of the fishing and tourism industries, and the tragic loss of life wrought by the Deepwater Horizon disaster. She was a part of the pro-drilling block of Democrats pushing for outer continental shelf drilling to be included in the Senate climate and energy bill. Her continuing loyalty to the dirty and dangerous oil and gas industries makes her complicit in the devastation inflicted on the Gulf Coast.
“Sen. Landrieu has refused to dispose of her campaign contributions from BP. Even if she is proud of the money she’s received from BP and BP officials, I cannot understand why she would not want to put this money to use helping her state recover from the worst environmental catastrophe in U.S. history.
“Sen. Landrieu exemplifies the overwhelming corporate influence in Washington, which has undermined the ability of our government to function in the public interest. Sen. Landrieu needs to make clear whether she thinks she’s in an oil-igarchy or a democracy. If she’s committed to democracy, she must give this money back, stop doing corporate polluters’ bidding and start acting in the public interest.”
Friends of the Earth’s campaign applies to all members of Congress who have taken oil money, but will focus in particular on Sen. Landrieu and the other four senators and the five House members who have taken the most money from BP in the last few years. They are being urged to contribute the money to organizations like the Gulf Coast Fund, which channels resources directly to impacted communities so they can lead in recovery efforts.
The “BP Ten” are:
Senate
• John McCain (R-Ariz., $36,649 from BP and $2,428,287 from Big Oil since 2006)
• Mary Landrieu (D-La., $16,200 from BP and $329,100 from Big Oil since 2006)
• Mark Begich (D-Alaska, $8,550 from BP and $85,958 from Big Oil since 2006)
• Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska, $8,500 from BP and $223,326 from Big Oil since 2006)
• Mitch McConnell (R-Ky., $8,500 from BP and $408,400 from Big Oil since 2006)
House
• John Culberson (R-Texas, $10,200 from BP and $187,350 from Big Oil since 2006)
• Ron Paul (R-Texas, $7,300 from BP and $134,132 from Big Oil since 2006)
• Charles Rangel (D-N.Y., $6,500 from BP and $40,600 from Big Oil since 2006)
• Steny Hoyer (D-Md., $6,000 from BP and $91,800 from Big Oil since 2006)
• Don Young (R-Alaska, $5,500 from BP and $45,500 from Big Oil since 2006)
Source: OpenSecrets.org
More information about the campaign, including graphics and social media tools, is available at: /bp-ten.
More information about the Gulf Coast Fund, to which Friends of the Earth is urging members of Congress to direct the oil funds they have received, can be found at http://gulfcoastfund.org/.
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Friends of the Earth and our network of grassroots groups in 77 countries fight to create a more healthy, just world. Our current campaigns focus on clean energy and solutions to global warming, protecting people from toxic and new, potentially harmful technologies, and promoting smarter, low-pollution transportation alternatives.