33/20/08 by simpson
What’s it take to keep government chugging along smoothly in your favor? In Exxon Mobil’s case, the oil giant’s executives opted to plunk down $16.9 million in 2007 to lobby the federal government.
That’s the amount listed in a recent disclosure form filed with the U.S. Senate’s office of public disclosure, according to the Associate Press. The company said it lobbied Congress on various appropriations bills and on legislation dealing with such things as patent reform, taxes and royalties, railroad security and lobbying reform.
I bet I know where they stood on that last one.
During the second half of 2007 the oil giant said it spent $10.7 million lobbying. You’ll recall that the energy bill signed by President Bush in December did not include billions of dollars in higher taxes for oil companies that many Democrats wanted to use to fund tax breaks for clean energy companies.
Anybody see a correlation?
And Exxon Mobil didn’t confine its arm twisting to Capitol Hill. The oil giant reports lobbying the White House, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, U.S. Representative’s office and the departments of Energy, Defense, Interior, State, Commerce, Homeland Security.
Is it any wonder that the forces of what Robert Reich terms supercapitalism are drowning out the voices of average citizens?