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How the White House Delivered a Crushing Economic Blow to the Gulf
pjmedia ^ | 20AUG12 | by Sen. David Vitter

Posted on 08/20/2012 4:23:48 PM PDT by bayouranger

PJM EXCLUSIVE: Louisiana's GOP senator on how the cover-up to trump sound science in favor of political ideology keeps growing with each chapter.

Here’s the book-jacket teaser: A major U.S. environmental disaster strikes. As Coast Guard and other heroes struggle to contain the unprecedented damage, a different scene unfolds in a dimly lit conference room in Washington. A small group of high-ranking political hacks and overzealous ideologues see an opportunity to manipulate the situation to advance their agenda. They doctor a key report on the disaster by experts in order to justify shutting down all exploration and new production. They explain the sweeping decision as something sound science requires.

Several weeks later, members of Congress and a few in the media dig deeper into the alleged science behind bringing an entire industry to a screeching halt. That’s when the cover-up begins.

A catchy political thriller? If only it were fiction. Instead, it’s what seems to have happened in the Obama administration following the BP disaster. Advertisement

And as a U.S. senator from Louisiana, I suffered through seeing it firsthand.

Some aspects of the 30-day experts’ report seemed suspect to me from the beginning. So I called for an inspector general to investigate the Obama administration’s claim that science supported the decision to shut down the Gulf. That investigation revealed that high-ranking officials in the Department of the Interior and the White House inappropriately manipulated the 30-day experts’ report to justify the offshore drilling moratorium — all in violation of the Information Quality Act and contrary to sound science.

On June 21, 2010, new reports revealed that the scientists in question in fact opposed the moratorium. They were shocked that their report was doctored to justify it. They even actively lobbied Interior Secretary Ken Salazar to soften the ban.

However, on Nov. 10, 2010, Mary Kendall, the inspector general for the Interior Department investigation, concluded that Interior officials were really only guilty of sloppy editing. She determined that Interior’s moving some words around in the experts’ report was more akin to a clerical error, and that Interior Secretary Salazar had already apologized for that.


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Front Page News; Government; Mexico; US: Alabama; US: Florida; US: Louisiana; US: Mississippi; US: Texas
KEYWORDS: 2012; alabama; bhofascism; bp; deepwaterhorizon; democrats; florida; gulf; gulfdrilling; louisiana; louisianna; macondo; mexico; mississippi; obama; offshoredrilling; opec; texas
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As Mark Twain once famously said: “Truth is stranger than fiction.” Unfortunately, it can also have serious, real-world consequences, unlike a cleverly written political thriller. It would all make for one heck of a political thriller. If only it were fiction.
1 posted on 08/20/2012 4:23:57 PM PDT by bayouranger
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To: bayouranger

Hurricane Katrina has got nothing on Hurricane Barry


2 posted on 08/20/2012 4:36:42 PM PDT by hattend (Firearms and ammunition...the only growing industries under the Obama regime.)
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To: bayouranger
all in violation of the Information Quality Act and contrary to sound science.

And I wonder what criminal penalties are associated with such a violation of said act. Perhaps none?
3 posted on 08/20/2012 4:45:49 PM PDT by andyk (Go Juan Pablo!)
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To: bayouranger

I lost my job right after Obama went for the photo-op swim in Pensacola Bay to send a message to the Coast Guard he wanted the Gulf Oil Spill off the front page.


4 posted on 08/20/2012 4:50:37 PM PDT by OrioleFan (Republicans believe every day is July 4th, Democrats believe every day is April 15th.)
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To: andyk

Ah, the headline’s referring to the Gulf of Mexico! My head was spinning as I started to read the piece. Usually when the subject is oil the Persian Gulf is meant and I couldn’t see how crippling our own oil drilling industry hurt the Middle Eastern gulf states.


5 posted on 08/20/2012 4:54:40 PM PDT by Bernard Marx
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To: bayouranger
Katrina hurt us all but obamao has destroyed many businesses on the coast of Mississippi and my business is on life support. BP and the government response to that accident then crashed the economies of Mississippi and Louisiana and barry hammered in the last nail.

LLS

6 posted on 08/20/2012 5:43:59 PM PDT by LibLieSlayer (Sarah speaking at the romney convention would be like Led Zeppelin opening for The Monkees)
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To: AdmSmith; AnonymousConservative; Berosus; bigheadfred; Bockscar; ColdOne; Convert from ECUSA; ...

Thanks bayouranger.


7 posted on 08/20/2012 5:47:31 PM PDT by SunkenCiv (https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/)
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Obama bows down to Saudi King | American Thinker | April 02, 2009 | Clarice Feldman | Posted on 04/02/2009 8:19:47 AM PDT by rdb3
Obama bows down to Saudi King | American Thinker | April 02, 2009 | Clarice Feldman | Posted on 04/02/2009 8:19:47 AM PDT by rdb3

8 posted on 08/20/2012 5:54:16 PM PDT by SunkenCiv (https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/)
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To: bayouranger

The rig was sabotaged pure and simple.

And the government response to the explosion makes the post Katrina response look like it was neat and orderly.


9 posted on 08/20/2012 7:28:21 PM PDT by 2CAVTrooper ( For those who have had to fight for it, freedom has a flavor the protected shall never know.)
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To: 2CAVTrooper
The rig was sabotaged pure and simple.

You need to add a layer of tinfoil to your hat.

The blowout started miles beneath the rig. When the gas cloud engulfed so much of the rig, there was no way to keep the explosion from happening.

10 posted on 08/21/2012 5:57:23 AM PDT by thackney (life is fragile, handle with prayer)
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To: 2CAVTrooper

“The rig was sabotaged pure and simple.”

Yeah right. And 9/11 was a government plot.

I worked for BP for 25 years. Disasters like this are standard operating procedure for them. This one just happened to be bigger than most.

There was no sabotage. There was an abundance of incompetance caused by trying to hold costs down by sacrificing safety and good engineering practices.


11 posted on 08/21/2012 8:31:27 AM PDT by 43north (BHO: 50% black, 50% white, 100% RED)
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To: bayouranger; duffee; onyx; DrewsMum; Tupelo; mstar; jdirt; Vietnam Vet From New Mexico; wardaddy; ..

MS ping


12 posted on 08/21/2012 9:46:58 AM PDT by WKB (After 4 years I am ready from a little R and R!!)
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To: bayouranger

0bama is sabotaging America. He was chosen for this mission, and as a black man he’s immune from criticism or impeachment. As such, he has free reign to wield his wrecking ball upon America. Denying 500,000 barrels of oil per day from the Keystone pipeline. Using his shadow government EPA to inhibit America’s farmers and coal producers from flourishing. Using ICE to ensure that Americans’ jobs are stolen by illegal alien invaders. Encouraging Americans AND illegal aliens sign on to entitlements in exchange for their vote. Fomenting class warfare in an attempt to turn Americans against capitalism and to embrace socialism. Empowering the ‘have nots’ with the ‘haves’ money. In addition to teachers, police, firefighters, postal workers, Unionizing the TSA and ALL healthcare workers; Building a UNION ARMY “just as powerful, just as strong and just as well-funded” (Obama quote) as our military (Obama’s words). Weakening America by divulging information that keeps us safe; Tipping the enemy off so as to weaken us. Allowing Iran to seize our classified drone. Eagerly sponsoring the Middle East’s ‘CHANGE’ into Sharia Law under the cover of ‘Arab Spring’. Eagerly sponsoring America’s ‘CHANGE’ into National Socialism with the United Nations as the controlling body under the cover of ‘FORWARD’.


13 posted on 08/21/2012 11:50:21 AM PDT by GeorgeWashingtonsGhost
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To: thackney

What you just said doesn’t support your argument that it wasn’t sabotage. It’s a bit too coincidental with 0bama’s overall mission to kill oil and coal don’cha think? What about it happening the day before Earth Day, huh? Fast & Furious was the excuse 0bama needed to implement harsh gun regs upon FFL’s (firearm dealers), so what excuse would he need to proceed to shut down coal and oil? The BP ‘disaster’, right? How long did 0bama wait to get involved in this ‘spill’???? 30 days, 60 days?? He didn’t hesitate to say ‘cops acted stupidly’ so why would he wait on the spill? So it would get worse just as he wanted it to.


14 posted on 08/21/2012 12:12:59 PM PDT by GeorgeWashingtonsGhost
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To: LibLieSlayer; WKB
Katrina hurt us all but obamao has destroyed many businesses on the coast of Mississippi and my business is on life support. BP and the government response to that accident then crashed the economies of Mississippi and Louisiana and barry hammered in the last nail.
LLS

God bless and keep you, dearest LLS. I despise the Marxist and his evil regime. "One and done."

Dear Lord, I'm still praying for a miracle. DrO tells me Paul Ryan is that miracle. One heart beat away.

15 posted on 08/21/2012 12:21:16 PM PDT by onyx (FREE REPUBLIC IS HERE TO STAY! DONATE MONTHLY! IF YOU WANT ON SARAH PALIN''S PING LIST, LET ME KNOW)
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To: onyx
I have never prayed harder in my life my dear friend. GOD bless you and yours too. I am confident that HE will answer our prayers.

LLS

16 posted on 08/21/2012 12:24:30 PM PDT by LibLieSlayer (Sarah speaking at the romney convention would be like Led Zeppelin opening for The Monkees)
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To: bayouranger

Give Obama a bicycle and have him ride around Shreveport.

I doubt he would survive very long.


17 posted on 08/21/2012 12:25:36 PM PDT by Candor7 (Obama fascism article: http://www.americanthinker.com/2009/05/barack_obama_the_quintessentia_1.html)
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To: GeorgeWashingtonsGhost
It’s a bit too coincidental with 0bama’s overall mission to kill oil and coal don’cha think?

No I don't. I've read the reports and followed it rather closely. So many different things went wrong by multiple parties for it to create such an immense disaster. Any one of several items would have prevented it, or made the damage far smaller.

http://www.oilspillcommission.gov/sites/default/files/documents/FinalReportPartII.pdf

18 posted on 08/21/2012 1:10:48 PM PDT by thackney (life is fragile, handle with prayer)
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To: SunkenCiv

That picture is so sickening. Yet almost half the people in this country still worship this man and would bow down to him given the chance.


19 posted on 08/21/2012 3:08:27 PM PDT by Terry Mross (To all my relatives and former friends: Do not contact me if you still love obama.)
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To: LibLieSlayer

You might be irritated with me, but I’m not with you.

I am so sorry to hear of your business difficulties. I pray that all is well soon...11-06-12.


20 posted on 08/21/2012 11:36:56 PM PDT by dixiechick2000 (This hobbit is looking for her pitchfork...God help the GOP if I find it.)
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