It was announced earlier today BP has agreed to the 20 Billion in an escrow account for the Gulf victims. I believe negotiations are still going on so I'll probably update tonight. Think Progress has this to say...
Sticking with the “Obama is a socialist” meme, Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) called the account a “redistribution of wealth fund.” Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour (R) also thinks it is a bad idea. Although he noted on Fox News last night that BP is “saying that they have the ability to pay and that they will pay,” Barbour expressed concern that BP will lose some profits:
BARBOUR: If BP is the responsible party under the law, they’re to pay for everything. I do worry that this idea of making them make a huge escrow fund is going to make it less likely that they’ll pay for everything. They need their capital to drill wells. They need their capital to produce income. … But this escrow bothers me that it’s going to make them less able to pay us what they owe us. And that concerns me. … [I]t bothers me to talk about causing an escrow to be made, which will — which makes it less likely that they’ll make the income that they need to pay us.BP made $163 billion in profits from 2001 through 2009 and nearly $6 billion in the first quarter of 2010 alone. As the Washington Post noted, in the early days of the spill, BP paid $17.5 million per day while the company made on average $93 million per day in the first quarter.
In fact, throughout the oil spill disaster, Barbour has come to BP’s defense, downplaying its impact, blaming the media for his state’s economic woes, and even encouraging tourists to come to Mississippi’s oil contaminated beaches. “BP has never said no to any requests we have made,” he said. “I’m not going to complain.” Indeed, Barbour probably won’t complain because he owes the oil and gas industry for his rise in politics.
Yes I stick by my previous assertion, Barbour is a buffoon...
This is what we are dealing with on a daily basis from rightwingers....another headline from Think Progress...
When asked about Obama’s prayer for the Gulf, Gingrich says he ‘hopes he means it.’
Last night, Obama delivered a national address on BP’s oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico. “We pray for the people of the Gulf, and we pray that a hand may guide us through the storm towards a greater day,” Obama said. This morning, Fox and Friends invited former House Speaker Newt Gingrich to find fault with Obama’s prayer. The hosts asked Gingrich — whose new book warns that progressives are trying to impose a “secular socialist machine” — about some content in Obama’s speech “that you might’ve found surprising, his references to God.” Gingrich expressed skepticism about Obama’s intent. “Well, I hope he means it,” he said. Host Gretchen Carlson then went on to say that “some people are analyzing that this morning as…disingenuous from a president who does not go to Church on a regular basis”
yea and I'll go on to say, "who are these fuckin creeps on this fake news show? Maybe someone should analyze them to see just how disingenuous they are! "
