Two
Americas:
The Energy Industry and
their Political Power and Influence
by Brian
Pearson
Member of the Coalition for the Responsible Siting of LNG
Facilities
Fall River, Massachusetts
Introduction
As Vice
Presidential Candidate John Edwards has said, “there are two Americas.”
Fall River Massachusetts and
the surrounding area is a great
example of what Senator Edwards is talking about. This paper has been
produced by the Coalition for the Responsible Siting of LNG
Facilities to demonstrate what is now taking place in
the United
States but on a smaller more local scale. We hope the reader will come
away with a better
understanding of the tremendous power that the
oil and gas industry now has and how the citizens of this nation
are slowly losing their authority over their government and their
future.
Our government, if we can actually use that term at all,
has become more responsive to a minority who truly hold
the
power. A handful of corporations from several different industries not
only influence elections with their vast
reserves of cash but
they now influence the federal government by the key positions that
ex-employees now
hold. This paper will strive, and we believe
succeed, in demonstrating that the power is no longer with the people
but in the hands of the powerful. We thank you for taking your time
in reading “Two Americas”.
Fall River
Massachusetts
The small mill city of
Fall River Massachusetts sits quietly on the banks of the Taunton River.
For years the city
has been battling against a self inflicted
negativity that has given people from outside the city a bad perception
of the community. For many of the inhabitants of this community
of 92,000 people, the main aspiration is to find
a job that will
pay enough so that they can afford an apartment, raise a family, and in a
few years have enough
money to put down on that dream home. The
population is made up of a diverse group of people, some who can
trace their ancestry back several generations whether from England,
Ireland or Canada while many others are
newcomers to these
shores. In the last 50 years hard working immigrants from the Azores,
Brazil, Lebanon,
Cambodia, Puerto Rico and Central America have
all called Fall River their home.
Life has been rough for the
residents of Fall River. Many have worked in the city’s textile mills
which are called
sweatshops by the locals. The pay was low but
the camaraderie among the workers made the grueling jobs
bearable. The fathers and mothers of Fall River struggled each week
to pay the bills and then save the few
pennies they could so that
life for their children would be better than it had been for them. Over
the years the
people of Fall River started to realize that life
in their community could be better and that there is more to their
existence than renting an apartment and living from paycheck to
paycheck. They looked around Fall River and
realized that they
could improve their lives and enhance the city at the same time.
Neighborhood associations
formed to battle against crime and
cleanup their own tiny section of the city. An environmental organization,
Green Futures, came into being and led the charge to enrich the
quality of life in Fall River by protecting the
environment and
improving the surroundings. An art group, the Narrows Center for the Arts,
has introduced
artists and their talents to Fall River and the
neighboring area.
The city has stepped forward with a grand vision
for its waterfront. The goal is to make the waterfront of Fall
River a place where families will go to relax, play and live. No
longer will dilapidated buildings, mills, and shacks
spoil the
view but instead a bike trail is being planned, a tree lined boulevard,
restaurants, marinas, and homes
will line the Taunton River. This
vision has already taken its first few tiny steps. A beautiful pedestrian
walkway
that gently hugs the river has been completed. Each day
young couples, senior citizens, and families can be
seen
strolling along the walkway. It winds through Heritage State Park, a
sliver of green that is the site of evening
concerts and summer
festivities. On a sunny day people from throughout the area bring their
lawn chairs to this
spot to view a nightly spectacle, a
breathtaking sunset. The sunsets at Heritage State Park range from a
brilliant
gold to a deep, dark red. There are days when the
colors are so rich you can almost see our Lord painting the
rich
colors in layers across the horizon.
Our waterfront is also home to
the Commonwealth’s World War II memorial, the Battleship Massachusetts.
Here
the city and the state honor the sacrifices of the men and
women who fought valiantly to protect our nation.
Adjacent to the
battleship new businesses have taken root. The Marine Museum, the Narrows
Center for the
Arts, and a railroad museum have all added and
improved the quality of life of the citizens.
Why
Fall River?
Fall River has clawed
and struggled to earn the respect due her. She has improved her image by
deciding to
travel on a different path in regards to its
waterfront. Now the Federal Government in the form of the Federal
Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), the Department of Transportation
(DOT) and the greed and avarice of
Amerada Hess, Weaver’s Cove
and the law firm of Baker Botts would like to stop the progress the city
has made
and once again burden the city with an industry that
will take away the beauty, the safety, and the peace the
citizens
of Fall River now posses.
These companies and government agencies
have targeted the city of Fall River as a site for an LNG terminal.
Comparing the Fall River site to any other proposed LNG location in
the country or any existing LNG terminal
one would have to
wonder, “Why Fall River?” The proposed site in Fall River is 25 miles
inland from the Atlantic
Coast. The route would force the LNG
tanker to travel under 4 major bridges. The entire route has many tiny
coves and inlets which are accessible to speed boats that can be used
by terrorist. Coming up Mount Hope Bay,
Narragansett Bay and the
Taunton River one can see that the waterway narrows and lining the shore
are a
multitude of family homes. By the time the tanker reaches
Fall River the river becomes very narrow and only a
few hundred
feet will separate the ship from the shoreline. At this point we have
numerous tenement buildings,
single family homes and large mill
buildings all containing thousands of men, women and children.
The
LNG terminal site abuts a residential area and is only 1,200 feet away
from the nearest homes. No where
else in the United States is
there a current or proposed LNG facility that will be so close to human
habitation!
The question must be asked again, “Why Fall
River?”
Federal
Agencies and Political Influence
The answer to the
question: “Why Fall River?” is an easy one. Amerada Hess, Weaver’s Cove,
the Baker Botts
law firm, the FERC and the DOT all thought that
the citizens of Fall River would be a push over when it came to
siting this dangerous facility. They did not realize that the people
in this area have a deep respect and love for
the community. They
did not realize that the mothers and fathers would fight to protect their
families. They did
not realize that the people would spend
thousands of hours researching the dangers of LNG. They did not
realize that the citizens could not be bought off by offering money
to a poor community as Judas was bought off
by the Romans.
Unfortunately for the citizens of Fall River the companies involved in
this project still had an ace
up their sleeve and that ace is
called the Federal Government.
Our great country has been
compromised by several industries, one being the Oil and Gas Industry. No
longer
can we say “We the People” it is now “We the
Corporations”. These huge conglomerates have taken control of
some of our governmental agencies. Before Amerada Hess and Weaver’s
Cove hired Baker Botts the people of
the Fall River area had
never heard of this law firm, but we learned quickly who they are and who
they
represent.
Baker
Botts Law Firm
Puppet Master
It
turns out that the Baker Botts law firm is one of the most politically
influential and powerful law firms in the
entire world. When it
comes to the oil and gas industry the Baker Botts law firm are the “go to
guys”. With their
widespread contacts in Washington and around
the world they specialize in setting up deals, working on
government regulations, and making political connections, whether in
our federal government or in foreign
governments. The
senior partner of the firm is James Baker, the former Secretary of State
under President
George H. W. Bush. Members of Baker Botts have
been appointed to very powerful and influential positions
during
the previous Bush administration and the current administration.
It appears that whenever a Bush is in the White House the law firm
of Baker Botts is there pulling some of the
strings. Back in the
early 90’s George W. Bush was investigated for possible wrong doing in
regards to Harken
Energy shares he sold just prior to the stock
plummeting at the stock market. At the time Mr. Bush was a Board
of Director of the company and had accessibility to information on
the weakness of the company. Security
Exchange Commission (SEC)
regulations require that the sale of stock by a company director be
promptly
reported. The SEC received the necessary documents 8
months after the sale and launched an investigation.
They
interviewed the accounting firm for the company, the infamous Arthur
Andersen Company, and took boxes
of documents from Harken Energy.
What the SEC did not do was subpoena records, talk to George W. Bush or
other Harken directors or officials. In the end the SEC concluded
that it would be difficult to establish that Bush
possessed
material nonpublic information when he sold his stock. In reality the CFO
of Harken Energy had sent
out a memo just weeks prior to George
W. Bush selling his stocks stating that Harken “will deplete all available
cash to pay payroll and other basic needs.”
During the
investigation Bush had hired Attorney Robert Jordan, who at the time was a
senior partner at the
Baker Botts law firm. Mr. Jordan has
recently been picked by George W. Bush to be the ambassador to Saudi
Arabia.
Over at the SEC, the agency investigating Bush, the
chairman was Richard Breeden who had been appointed by
Bush
senior. Breeden had also been President George H. W. Bush’s assistant for
issues analysis and prior to
that Mr. Breeden was a partner at
the Washington office of Baker Botts! The SEC’s General Counsel, who would
be responsible for any litigation initiated by the commission,
was James Doty. Mr. Doty was also a veteran from
Baker Botts!
Today James Doty is back at Baker Botts and is working for the Haliburton
Corporation (Vice
President Dick Cheney’s former corporation)
investigating a bribery scandal in Nigeria.
These days the Baker
Botts law firm continues to have former employees in very influential
positions. Across the
United States many oil and gas firms are
pushing hard to site LNG facilities whether on shore or offshore. The
power to site an LNG terminal in the United States rests with two
agencies, the FERC and the DOT. The DOT
has a large say in the
matter when it comes to interstate transportation of the LNG. The Deputy
Secretary of the
DOT, the second most powerful person at the
agency, is Kirk Van Tine. Mr. Van Tine is also a former attorney
for the Baker Botts law firm. Over at FERC, the agency overseeing the
regulations dealing with the terminal
itself, the Chairman is
Patrick Wood III a former Baker Botts attorney. Both appointments were
made by George
W. Bush.
A special note must be made of Pat
Wood III. Mr. Wood was recommended to George W. Bush on two occasions
by Ken Lay of the Enron Corporation. During his days as Governor of
Texas George W. Bush was asked by Mr.
Lay to appoint Mr. Wood as
chairman of the Texas Utility Commission, which he did. As president
George W.
Bush was again contacted by Ken Lay, this time he
recommended to Bush that he name Mr. Wood as the
chairman of
FERC. One obvious reason is that Pat Wood III has been a fighter for
deregulation which came in
handy for the Enron Corporation and
other energy concerns when questionable energy deals were done in
California. This clearly demonstrates, to the Coalition for the
Responsible Siting of LNG Facilities, that the
energy companies
have a direct pipeline into the FERC office in Washington.
During
the 1999 / 2000 presidential campaign the Baker Botts law firm donated
$113,621 to the Bush campaign.
As for the senior partner of the
firm, James Baker, he and two other lawyers represented Presidential
candidate
George W. Bush during the Florida recount. Baker Botts
was paid nearly $600,000 for the work they did during
the recount
fiasco. Nowadays Mr. Baker has been picked by the Iraqi Governing Council
to help restructure the
Iraqi debt which is believed to be
between $130 billion to $150 billion. Although Mr. Baker has ties with
many
firms such as the Carlyle Group and of course Baker Botts he
did not have to disclose his personal financial ties
since he was
not picked by the President for the debt restructuring job. In addition
Baker has close ties with the
Saudi government which is owed at
least $30 billion by Iraq.
As mentioned before the new ambassador
from the United States to the Saudi government is a former Baker
Botts attorney. One last side note, members of the Saudi royal
family, banks and businesses have been hit with
a lawsuit from
the family members of the victims of the 9/11 tragedy. The Baker Botts law
firm is representing
members of the Saudi family in court against
the victim’s families.
Political
Power / Political Influence
The federal government
and the Bush administration have placed former Baker Botts attorneys in
other very
influential federal government jobs. Claude Allen is
the Deputy Secretary of the Department of Health and
Human
Services; Angela Styles, Administrator of the Office of Federal
Procurement Policy; John P. Elwood,
Counselor to the Assistant
Attorney General for the Department of Justice, Criminal Division; and J.
Bruce
McDonald, Deputy Assistant Attorney General in the U.S.
Department of Justice.
Many members of the Coalition for the
Responsible Siting of LNG Facilities feel that these Washington D. C.
connections at the FERC and the DOT give Amerada Hess and Weaver’s
Cove through their lawyers, Baker
Botts, an inside track and
undue influence on our government.
We have proven over and over
that to locate an LNG facility anywhere along the Taunton River would be
foolish
for many reasons. One major reason is that it is too
close to residential areas. All anybody has to do is read Dr.
James Fay’s reports on the damage such a facility would do to homes
and business’s lining the shore. In
addition Professor Jerry
Haven’s reports tell the same story, destruction could be widespread. Most
importantly
the FERC’s own report from the ABS Company
demonstrates that a major LNG spill could cause a catastrophe
to
a city such as Fall River or a town like Somerset. It clearly states that
a gas cloud could travel anywhere from
6,000 to 18,000 feet away
from the spill. Remember, there are homes only 1,200 feet away from the
facility.
In 1979 the U.S. General Accounting Office (GAO), which
acts as the investigative arm of Congress, researched
the LNG
issue. GAO Director J. Dexter Peach testified before the Senate and said,
“We believe remote siting is
the primary factor in safety.”
In addition to Mr. Peach speaking before the Senate Massachusetts
Congressman Ed Markey said recently,
“When Congress passed my LNG
safety bill back in 1979, it directed the Department of Transportation
(DOT) to
prescribe standards for the siting of new LNG facilities
that were supposed to consider the need to encourage
remote
siting.”
It is obvious to the residents in this area that the
political influence by the oil and gas industry through their law
firm is outweighing the damaging scientific information that has been
published, not only privately but by the
government agency (FERC)
itself.
While the FERC continues to ignore the damaging reports the
local political leaders have spoken out on the
issue. The mayor
of Fall River has come out in opposition to the project along with the
Fall River city council.
The local state delegation is opposed
and so is the Massachusetts Homeland Security and Federal Affairs sub-
committee and the entire state House of Representatives and Senate
have signed onto a resolution against this
foolish idea. In
addition Congressman Barney Frank and Congressman James McGovern have
opposed the
idea. In the surrounding area the selectmen in the
Massachusetts towns of Somerset, Swansea and Freetown
are all
opposed and so are the Rhode Island towns of Portsmouth, Tiverton,
Bristol, Jamestown and Newport.
Closing
At the beginning of
this paper we said that there are two Americas and we believe we have
proven that point.
There are so many negatives when it comes to
the siting of an LNG facility in Fall River or the surrounding area
that many of the residents felt that the chance of anyone actually
doing it was zero. This was before we learned
about the political
power and influence we are facing. We hope that you, the reader of this
paper, will spread the
warning about the federal government and
how they are ignoring the people of this country in the name of
greed, corporate profits and political power.
Contact
Information
Brian Pearson
886 Cherry St.
Fall River, MA
02720
508-678-3814
btrekman@mindspring.com
Web Page for the
Coalition: www.nolng.org
