Obama “claims czar” provides no relief for the people of the Gulf

[Hannah Bell]

On June 16, Obama met with BP CEO Tony Hayward and chairman Carl-Henric Svanberg in the White House. Afterward, he announced the creation of a BP claims escrow account of up to $20 billion to be funded over four years, which came to be known as the Gulf Coast Claims Facility (GCCF). In words carefully tuned to financial markets on Wall Street and the City of London, Obama declared, “BP is a strong and viable company and it is in all of our interests that it remain so.” From that point on, BP’s stocks and profits have been on an upward spiral (see “Obama seeks “inflection point” on Gulf oil disaster“).

The GCCF is not funded by anything close to $20 billion. BP is required to pay $1.25 billion per quarter into the fund, equivalent to about 22 percent of its $5.6 billion in profits for the fourth quarter 2010.

Much of what is paid out from the fund BP can count against its taxes in both the US and the UK; whatever it does not pay out will be returned to it in the form of profit. It can count “cleanup costs” against the fund—costs it alone determines—as well as legal damages and state-level fines, but not federal fines. Beyond this, Obama in August 2010 approved a deal whereby whatever fines BP pays will be tied to its Gulf oil revenue. In other words, BP is protected from suffering almost any loss.

Those who accept money from the fund agree to waive in perpetuity the right to sue BP for further damages. Under these draconian terms, the GCCF has so far paid out a mere $3.8 billion from the “$20 billion” fund. With Feinberg claiming that he has already “processed” nearly 80 percent of all claims, it is likely that not much more will be forthcoming. According to an analysis by Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood, the GCCF has paid only 3 percent of business claims and 9 percent of individual claims. Feinberg reports that about 300,000 of 800,000 claimants have received some compensation. According to several media accounts, they have gotten about 10 percent of what they requested.

http://www.wsws.org/articles/2011/apr2011/spi4-a26.shtml

[Poll_Blind]

1. That makes me fucking sick.

PB

[Mimosa]

2. Feinberg hates the shrimpboot wearing low class cajuns and has shown they don't count.

Don't think Cajuns and creoles are naive. They've been screwed over and over going back to the 1920s. No wonder they quit trusting Dems and Republicons back during the new deal. The only person looking out for them was Huey Long, the Kingfish, and he was murdered when he talked about sharing the (oil) wealth.

If some of you all don't know do yourself a favour and look how populists -dems or republicans- seem to get shot down the minute their messages begin resonating with the people at large. It's an obvious pattern of murders.

[DCKit]

4. I think Feinberg has a deathwish.

You don't fuck with the Cajuns.

[notesdev]

3. I believe I predicted exactly this outcome

only to be naysayed to hell and back by the usual suspects

[Mimosa]

9. I remember. n/t

[Obamanaut]

5. It is looking more and more like 'hopey-changey' is code for 'same old, same old.' nt

[Starry Messenger]

6. k&r

[Karmadillo]

7. Gee. Who could have seen this coming from the Obama admin. Shock!!!!

nt

[bullwinkle428]

8. Feinberg always came across as such an arrogant fucker - not

shocked in the least to hear him almost gleeful over the idea of screwing over the victims of the spill.