BREAKING: a bailout for BP's oil spill

[BrklynLiberal]

A letter from True Majority..



I can't believe it either.

As the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig continues to spill over 1 million gallons of oil into the Gulf every day, Republicans are demanding less regulation for companies like BP and Transocean while also looking for a taxpayer-funded bailout of BP.1 Yeah, I'm serious.

After a month of oil spewing into the Gulf, the cost of cleaning up BP's mess is $542 million and counting. But a group of Republican senators led by Lisa Murkowski of Alaska want the company to pay for only the first five days of the cleanup and put taxpayers on the hook for everything else.2

That's right, Murkowski and her pals want to "Bail out BP."

We need to tell Murkowski and her Senate colleagues that this is not OK. Can you send a message to your senators that it's time to end offshore drilling and focus on clean energy instead?


http://act.truemajorityaction.org/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=71

BP makes over $3.9 million EVERY HOUR.3 In the 31 days since the rig exploded, they've earned over $2.8 billion. Meanwhile, BP lawyers are working overtime to make sure that they are on the hook for only $75 million of the cleanup cost. And Murkowski and her allies think that's just fine because, to them, fewer rules are a good thing.

First, they wanted less regulation for Wall Street and the banks (look where that got us). Now, they want to do the same for oil companies. It's outrageous. We need oversight that protects our communities and environment -- not another taxpayer-funded bailout of the oil companies.

Congress needs another wake-up call to remind them that we're watching. Congress can't continue to let corporate America avoid responsibility and then bail them out when they can't clean up their own mistakes.

Tell your senators to say no to the BP bailout and to focus on clean energy solutions instead.

Thanks,

-Drew

Drew Hudson
TrueMajority / USAction

[donco6]

1. I predict they'll get it. The only question is how "off the hook" will they be?

And you can bookmark it.

[uponit7771]

2. Many at DU are screamin for a BP bailout also, want the government to take over golf cleanup

[tavalon]

3. I'm one of the ones screaming for the government to get involved

but I never said the bill should go anywhere but BP.

[donco6]

5. Government takeover does not mean BP doesn't pay.

It simply means we move the incompetents out of the way while we get experts involved who know that they're doing. BP isn't the only drilling company in the world. And they've already demonstrated their incompetence.

[GReedDiamond]

8. I want the Fed Govt to take over...

...and shut down the flow, cap the fucker. Close it down for good. And then charge BP for all costs involved in any Govt run effort to do so, PLUS charge BP civilly for all related environmental/economic damages to the Gulf Coast region and its people, and prosecute these scumbags for their extreme criminal negligence. BP officials, starting with the CEO, should be jailed for a significant length of time, and have all of their personal assets seized. And if these actions were to put BP out of business, I'd celebrate, throw a "Good Riddance BP" party at my house. You're all invited.

If jail time and asset forfeiture are good enough for pot smokers, why isn't it appropriate in the case of these egregious greed-driven corporate criminals?

[socialist_n_TN]

19. Sounds good to me

but rather than running them out of business, just NATIONALIZE the fucker and use it as a state run, non PROFIT (or minimal profit) oil company. If the private sector is better at everything, then they'll be able to compete with the USGP (United States Government Petroleum) on service if nothing else. Right?

BP is probably in that "too big to fail category", ergo it's "Just the right size to nationalize!"

[Statistical]

21. How do you think UK will respond to US nationalizing their 4th largest company?

I guess UK could simply nationalize all US assets in their country right?

Kinda hard to NATIONALIZE something that doesn't belong to the NATION. :)

By the same logic we should NATIONALIZE all the oil fields in Iraq to pay for the Iraq war.

[robinblue]

10. a bailout was not part of the gov taking the lead in the cleanup.

[Jamastiene]

11. What has Tiger Woods got to do with this?

I couldn't resist. :evilgrin:

[BrklynLiberal]

17. lol....

[laughingliberal]

25. Lol! nt

[ShamelessHussy]

14. bzzzzz - wrong answer. folks are asking for leadership, and greater efforts to match the EPIC scale

of this ONGOING disaster.

this is not an either or proposition... BP can still be responsible for the cleanup costs, hello.

[laughingliberal]

24. Wanting the government to take over operations does not mean we don't want BP to pay the bill

If I'm injured in a car accident where the other driver is at fault, they need to pay the bill but I'm not going to let the other driver do my surgeries or direct my medical care.

[spiritual_gunfighter]

26. The Government should be assisting in the clean up

but BP should pay for everything. That isnt a BP bailout.

[JackRiddler]

27. Bullshit - taking over the clean up, but BP still pays the bills (times ten, it should be)

[csziggy]

4. Tell Se. Murkowski that wi n/tl be OK if it comes out of Alaska's oil profits share.

[bluestateguy]

6. It's amazing how quickly bailouts sail through Congress

Like the post-9/11 airline industry bailout. They weren't even asked to pay the money back. It just sailed through Congress no sweat, like bank bailout.

But to enact universal health care, we need 14 months of debate, hearings, press conferences, CBO analyses (and a new one every time the bill is changed too), more hearings, meetings, secret meetings, more press conferences, town hall meetings, more hearings, bizarre parliamentary procedures, and so on...

[Metta]

7. Done. Thanks.

:toast:

[TheKentuckian]

9. That should be a stockades and rotten tomato, offense.

Criminally stupid and insane.

[Jamastiene]

12. I knew it.

It'll happen too.

We can try to fight it though.

Rec'ed.

[Shining Jack]

15. I knew that someone had mentioned this.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=389&topic_id=8345619#8345648

But I'm sure that Obama as a secret plan and will fix everything.We just need to
give him some time.

[Duppers]

13. got this in my email today

and promptly forwarded it to all my email list.

thanks for posting.

[salguine]

16. The Republicans want a bail-out for BP, and you know what? They'll get it.

[Name removed]

18. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Statistical]

20. One correction. The $75 mil limit is not for cleanup costs. It is for damages.

[uponit7771]

22. WOW!! WTF?!?!?!?!?

[laughingliberal]

23. Yet, they try to lay the deficit at the feet of the Democrats.

Obama needs to call them out on this.

[Rosa Luxemburg]

28. Shouldn't this be headlines? The GOP has oil running through its veins!