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Page added on March 3, 2016
Oil and gas industry has pumped millions into Republican campaigns
Fossil fuel millionaires collectively pumped more than $100m into Republican presidential contenders’ efforts last year – in an unprecedented investment by the oil and gas industry in the party’s future.
About one in three dollars donated to Republican hopefuls from mega-rich individuals came from people who owe their fortunes to fossil fuels – and who stand to lose the most in the fight against climate change.
The scale of investment by fossil fuel interests in presidential Super Pacs reached about $107m last year – before any votes were cast in the Republican primary season.
Campaign groups said the funds raised questions about what kind of leverage the fossil fuel industry might enjoy if the Republicans were to take the White House.
Ted Cruz, the Texas senator seen as having the best chance of stopping Donald Trump from clinching the Republican nomination, was among the biggest beneficiaries of fossil fuel support to his Super Pac.
Cruz, who more than any other Republican candidate openly rejects mainstream science on climate change, banked some 57% of the funds to his Super Pac, or about $25m, from fossil fuel interests, according to campaign filings compiled by Greenpeace and reviewed by the Guardian.
The Texas senator, who picked up three states on Super Tuesday compared to seven for Trump, told NPR in December that climate change was a fiction concocted by liberals who want control over the economy. “The scientific evidence doesn’t support global warming,” he claimed at the time.
Greenpeace, which helped compile the filings with the Guardian, said Cruz’s rejection of climate science was a factor of his heavy reliance on fossil fuel funding.
“Ted Cruz’s complete denial of climate change science is perfectly in line with the business interests of his biggest funders,” said Jesse Coleman, a Greenpeace oil and gas campaigner. “These fossil funders have made denying climate change and ignoring scientists a prerequisite for being a Republican candidate.”
The Cruz campaign disavowed any knowledge of the Super Pac, but a spokeswoman reasserted the rejection of mainstream science about climate change. “Regarding climate change, Cruz’s position is very simple. The data does not back up the theory,” the spokeswoman said in an email, describing the global challenge as a “politically driven cause that grows government and enriches entrenched Washington special interests”.
Coleman suggested that Republicans were unlikely to give up climate denial even if Cruz does not win the nomination.
“While Donald Trump, also a climate change denier, is mostly self-funded for now, he will look to the fossil fuel industry for political support if he wins the nomination. Mr. Trump also has millions of dollars directly invested in the fossil fuel industry.”
Other fossil fuel favourites have already fallen by the wayside, with the winnowing of the crowded Republican field that began the race for the White House in 2015.
Chris Christie, who never made it beyond New Hampshire, had strong fossil fuel support, with oil and gas interests accounting for 39% of the funds to his Super Pac.
The establishment candidate Jeb Bush, who dropped out of the race after his failure to rise out of single digits in the polls, obtained about 26% of the funds for his Super Pac from the oil and gas industry.
As for Marco Rubio, who picked up his first state on Super Tuesday, fossil fuel interests accounted for about 23% of the Florida senator’s Super Pac.
The donations – $107m through the course of 2015 – came from 124 billionaires or businesses that pumped a minimum of $100,000 each towards Republican presidential hopefuls through support groups or Super Pacs.
Super Pacs, which operate outside the official campaigns, are free to take unlimited campaign contributions.
The $107m from mega-rich donors forms a major chunk of the $524m that was given to presidential contenders from both parties last year.
Campaign groups say the big spending by fossil fuel interests – and some candidates’ heavy reliance on them – raises questions about the leverage fossil fuel companies may try to exert over the White House if the next occupant is a Republican.
The fossil fuel super-donors all have connections to oil and gas operations – from fracking to petrochemicals.
Fossil fuel donors traditionally have favoured Republican candidates many times over their Democratic counterparts.
However, Hillary Clinton, the Democratic frontrunner, appears to have made inroads into the ranks of the favoured. Mega-rich fossil fuel donors pumped about 7% of the funds into Clinton’s Super Pac last year, according to the filings. Clinton was criticised by Bernie Sanders and Martin O’Malley, her erstwhile rival, for taking funds from fossil fuel lobbyists.
The findings revealed the largely unseen power players behind the Republicans’ presidential hopefuls – led by the Wilks family in Texas.
The family, which made its fortune from making equipment used in fracking oil and gas wells, gave about $15m to a Cruz-supporting Super Pac in 2015.
Next in line among the big fossil donors to Cruz was Toby Neugebauer, the son of Texas Republican congressman Randy Neugebauer and cofounder of an energy investment firm which has invested heavily in the Barnett Shale – ground zero of oil and gas fracking in Texas. The younger Neugebauer donated about $10m to Cruz’s Super Pac last year.
Cruz also won big from groups associated with the Kochs, the oil billionaires who have emerged as major funders of ultra-conservative causes in the US. Cruz’s Super Pac took in $11.9m from donors who have supported Koch causes or its Freedom Partners organisation – compared to $7.8m for Rubio.
Even among Republican presidential contenders – who have given short shrift to climate change aside from using it as a punchline – Cruz has stood out for his rejection of the scientific mainstream on climate change.
The Texas Republican has repeatedly insisted – contrary to the overwhelming scientific consensus – that there is no evidence of global warming.
24 Comments on "Oil and gas industry has pumped millions into Republican campaigns"
Dredd on Thu, 3rd Mar 2016 1:20 pm
It shows (The Donald University vs. The Lord GOP University).
penury on Thu, 3rd Mar 2016 2:00 pm
News Flash: Oil and Gas Industry has pumped millions into Dem Campaigns.
Apneaman on Thu, 3rd Mar 2016 2:14 pm
Climate deniers lose key talking point as satellites show temperatures hit all-time highs
http://mashable.com/2016/03/02/february-warmest-month-satellite/#QzSkNvZnBmqw
Apneaman on Thu, 3rd Mar 2016 2:16 pm
February 2016 compared to previous years: sea ice extent is the lowest in the satellite record at 14.22 million square kilometers (5.48 million square miles). The linear rate of decline for February is now 3.0 percent per decade.
https://nsidc.org/arcticseaicenews/files/2016/03/Figure3_0301.png
Apneaman on Thu, 3rd Mar 2016 2:40 pm
Looks like the MSM has caught on to the reality that we continue to approach the very real possibility of “The Clathrate Gun”. No worries it will all be forgotten the moment trump utters his next phrase, but the methane will continue to escape from the warming seas and melting permafrost. Better get those dopamine hits crossed of the bucket list – times short.
Climate trouble may be bubbling up in far north
” But his teams have found the frozen ground warming down to about 80 meters, and he believes the world is courting disaster in failing to curb warming by curbing greenhouse emissions.
“If we lost just 1% of the carbon in permafrost today, we’d be close to a year’s contributions from industrial sources,” he said. “I don’t think policymakers have woken up to this. It’s not in their risk assessments.”
How likely is a major release?
“I don’t think it’s a case of likelihood,” he said. “I think we are playing with fire.”
http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/JustOneThing/story?id=8457650
It’s happened before
Dissecting Paleoclimate Change
Using a core sample from the Santa Barbara Basin, UCSB researchers decipher the history of paleoclimate change with surprising results
“One of the most astonishing things about our results is the abruptness of the warming in sea surface temperatures,” explained co-author Kennett, a professor emeritus in UCSB’s Department of Earth Science. “Of the 13 degree Fahrenheit total change, a shift of 7 to 9 degrees occurred almost immediately right at the beginning.”
“The record is incredibly high fidelity…”
“The warming associated with the major climatic shift was accompanied by simultaneous releases of methane — a potent greenhouse gas.”
– See more at: http://www.news.ucsb.edu/2015/016158/dissecting-paleoclimate-change#sthash.K8evXcz6.dpuf
Anonymous on Thu, 3rd Mar 2016 4:28 pm
Funny how theguardian.com characterizes that 100m as an ‘investment'(cough bribe).
Orwell would be so proud…..
Apneaman on Thu, 3rd Mar 2016 4:50 pm
Bwahahahahaha
Harper 2.0? Trudeau Says Canada Needs More Tar Sands Pipelines
The Liberal prime minister argues that building more pipelines to transport dirty tar sands oil is necessary to fund Canada’s transition to a green future
http://www.commondreams.org/news/2016/03/03/harper-20-trudeau-says-canada-needs-more-tar-sands-pipelines
The Canadian cancer monkeys want their goodies too. Fuck the kids we want our dopamine hits NOW!
Apneaman on Thu, 3rd Mar 2016 4:54 pm
Congrats cancer monkeys!
Update: Today we breached +2°C for the first time. A milestone moment for our species.
http://www.scoopnest.com/user/EricHolthaus/705483632215986176
Apneaman on Thu, 3rd Mar 2016 5:20 pm
The Roof is On Fire — Looks like February of 2016 Was 1.5 to 1.7 C Above 1880s Averages
“Worst Fears For Global Heating Realized
We knew there’d be trouble. We knew that human greenhouse gas emissions had loaded the world ocean up with heat. We knew that a record El Nino would blow a big chunk of that heat back into the atmosphere as it began to fade. And we knew that more global temperature records were on the way in late 2015 and early 2016. But I have to say that the early indications for February are just staggering.”
http://robertscribbler.com/2016/03/03/the-roof-is-on-fire-looks-like-february-of-2016-was-1-5-to-1-7-c-above-1880s-averages/
Apneaman on Thu, 3rd Mar 2016 5:40 pm
Ted Cruz’s favorite temperature data just got a lot hotter
A new paper makes Ted Cruz’s favorite chart obsolete, as atmospheric temperatures set a new record
http://www.theguardian.com/environment/climate-consensus-97-per-cent/2016/mar/03/ted-cruzs-favorite-temperature-data-just-got-a-lot-hotter
Apneaman on Thu, 3rd Mar 2016 5:41 pm
Justice Department Refers Exxon Investigation Request to FBI
Attempt by two California congressmen to prompt a federal investigation is passed to the FBI’s criminal investigation unit.
http://insideclimatenews.org/news/02032016/justice-department-refers-exxon-investigation-request-fbi-climate-change-research-denial
theedrich on Thu, 3rd Mar 2016 5:43 pm
According to the above article, the only two candidates who have no FF money being poured into their campaigns are Trump and socialist Sanders. (Note the statement: “Mega-rich fossil fuel donors pumped about 7% of the funds into Clinton’s Super Pac last year, according to the filings.”) While the obviously anti-Trump writer says that DJT has a lot of money invested in the industry in question (as do millions participating in the stock market), there is no assurance that he will automatically give in to their demands. In fact, the true reason the various superpacs are against him is not because of his allegedly “outrageous” sayings, but precisely because he is perceived as threatening their vampirism. He is also suspected of being “flexible” — i.e., denying climate change during the campaign, but liable to “evolve” to a less rigid position afterwards. The well-hypnotized British writer is simply giving vent to his own hatred against Trump by claiming to have divine knowledge of the future in this case. But then again, Britain has historically been known as a strong contender for, and often winner of, first place in global political hypocrisy.
makati1 on Thu, 3rd Mar 2016 5:58 pm
The ongoing circus in the US is only one of the symptoms of a failing country. The kind of event that produces another Hitler. We shall see.
Pass the popcorn…
Apneaman on Thu, 3rd Mar 2016 6:15 pm
Ever closer to the eastern seaboard real estate fire sale.
Greenland’s melting is ‘feeding on itself,’ scientists say
“A new scientific study released Thursday has delivered yet another burst of bad news about Greenland — the vast northern ice sheet that contains 20 feet of potential sea level rise. The ice sheet is “darkening,” or losing its ability to reflect both visible and invisible radiation, as it melts more and more, the research finds. That means it’s absorbing more of the sun’s energy — which then drives further melting.
“I call it melting cannibalism. You have melting feeding on itself,” says Marco Tedesco, the lead author of the study and a researcher with Columbia University’s Lamont Doherty Earth Observatory.”
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2016/03/03/greenlands-vast-ice-sheet-is-getting-darker-heres-why-thats-really-bad-news/?postshare=9131457032906772&tid=ss_tw
Apneaman on Thu, 3rd Mar 2016 6:18 pm
Reality Check: No Matter Who Wins the White House, the New Boss Will Be the Same as the Old Boss
“The main problem in any democracy is that crowd-pleasers are generally brainless swine who can go out on a stage & whup their supporters into an orgiastic frenzy—then go back to the office & sell every one of the poor bastards down the tube for a nickel apiece.” ― Hunter S. Thompson
Politics today is not about Republicans and Democrats.
Nor is it about healthcare, abortion, higher taxes, free college tuition, or any of the other buzzwords that have become campaign slogans for individuals who have mastered the art of telling Americans exactly what they want to hear.
Politics today is about one thing and one thing only: maintaining the status quo between the Controllers (the politicians, the bureaucrats, and the corporate elite) and the Controlled (the taxpayers).
Hillary will not save the nation. Nor will Bernie, Trump, Rubio, or Cruz.”
more
https://www.rutherford.org/publications_resources/john_whiteheads_commentary/reality_check_no_matter_who_wins_the_white_house_the_new_boss_will_be_the_s
Apneaman on Thu, 3rd Mar 2016 6:25 pm
The Revenge of the Lower Classes and the Rise of American Fascism
“College-educated elites, on behalf of corporations, carried out the savage neoliberal assault on the working poor. Now they are being made to pay. Their duplicity—embodied in politicians such as Bill and Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama—succeeded for decades. These elites, many from East Coast Ivy League schools, spoke the language of values—civility, inclusivity, a condemnation of overt racism and bigotry, a concern for the middle class—while thrusting a knife into the back of the underclass for their corporate masters. This game has ended.”
http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/the_revenge_of_the_lower_classes_and_the_rise_of_american_fascism_20160302
bug on Thu, 3rd Mar 2016 6:44 pm
Mak is right, this is the best show ever.
Gets better daily.
Plantagenet on Thu, 3rd Mar 2016 11:57 pm
This is small potatoes. The real corporate grafter is Hillary—– she’s taken in more from CEOs and Superpacs then all the other Ds and Rs combined
FEEL THE BERN!
GregT on Fri, 4th Mar 2016 3:12 am
Now would be a very good time to brush up on your Russian language skills planter. The farthest outposts will be the first to go when the Empire collapses, and the Alaskan wealth fund lasts for less than two years, if the USD doesn’t collapse. Sure glad I don’t live where you do girl. Hillary is the least of your problems.
Kenz300 on Fri, 4th Mar 2016 9:18 am
The top 1% want it all….. and the RepubliCON party will give it to them………..
What do RepubliCONS believe…….. depends who is paying….. follow the money……. fossil fuels….. NRA………the top 1%
Are RepubliCONS the real EVIL DOERS………..they want to end Social Security, Medicare and access to contraception…….
twocats on Fri, 4th Mar 2016 10:04 am
Obama was to the Right of Nixon. The trajectory of US politics has been listing to the Right since the 60’s. Carter, Clinton, Obama, each in their own way continued this process. (Sorry, no time for History lessons kiddies).
But the real question is would it matter who is President as the ship capsizes?
I would almost rather not have Bernie “the perfect scapegoat” Sanders in the White House.
But I’m also reminded of a very well-known slogan the Communists of Germany held and actively disseminated in the lead-up to Hitler, and one reason they didn’t oppose him more strongly, “After Hitler – Communism.” The slogan should have been, “After Hitler, Oh Shit!”
I suppose the same could easily be said for Trump. (And any of the Republicans on the ticket?)
Davy on Fri, 4th Mar 2016 11:33 am
I wonder if a Trump presidency would be a neocon departure. His foreign policy so far seems to be a general pragmatic disengagement and detente with Russia. He seems to be pointing to a trade battles with China. He has also made reference to NATO as a drain on the US with little benefits. I myself am not voting because I can’t participate in a circus but I will be watching this interesting campaign unfold. I personally think Hillary a worse outcome then Trump. At least Trump may make a reproach to Russia and maybe kick some of the neocons out.
Practicalmaina on Fri, 4th Mar 2016 5:32 pm
He is the son of old money. think that is wishful thinking Davy. Trump would change the situation from a proxy war between us and Russia and make it white 1% (and all their pawns meaning the public) vs brown people.
Kenz300 on Mon, 7th Mar 2016 10:19 am
The elderly were brought up to believe in news correspondents and thought that they were being told the truth……..
It is a shame to tell half truths, lies and misinformation told as “opinion” rather than “NEWS” as FAUX NOISE does……
Now the elderly are being lied to on a daily basis and do not realize it………
Faux is not News — It is the spokesperson for the RepubliCON party, fossil fuels, NRA and the top 1%………..