We had a mini-firestorm yesterday after the House energy committee had BP CEO, Tony Hayward (now ex-CEO), in for a ritual beating. Joe Barton, a Texas Congressman and an honest man (as well as far better qualified to comment on the oil spill than 95% of his colleagues) apologized to BP for the disgusting treatment they had received from the Obama administration.
If you listen to what he says, there is nothing that I see as untrue. What really outrages me, is the behavior of the Republican leadership of the GOP in the House. They threatened him with loss of his position as ranking member. They ordered him to apologize for his remarks. This is truly outrageous.
Of course, the White House, showing that they can move quickly on issues that matter to them, immediately attacked Mr Barton. I am not surprised at their reaction. What would you expect them to say, knowing Barack Obama as we do now? Joe Biden, the Vice-President, attacked Mr Barton with considerably more skill than Obama and his usual minions. Biden has had decades to develop his skills in lying.
Later that day, under enormous pressure, Joe Barton apologized. Unfortunately, I cannot find the You Tube version of that statement but I have heard it and can reassure conservatives that his backing down was not of the cowardly variety but he maintained the truth of his earlier statement and apologized for the “misconstruction” of his statement. Of course, those misconstruing it, did so purposefully.
The scene we have witnessed the past few weeks is one of incompetence by our government (The Coast Guard stopped oil removal by barges because they could not verify the presence of life jackets on board) and grandstanding by Congressmen with a very weak connection to the science of the situation. Congressman Barton has BS and MS degrees in Engineering and has served as a consultant to the oil industry before his Congressional career. He is uniquely well qualified to judge the present situation. He represents a district heavily involved in the oil industry. What do you expect ?
I can understand the administration trying to mitigate the image of their incompetence. What I cannot accept is the reaction of Congressman’s Barton’s colleagues in the GOP leadership. That is disgusting. I got a call from the Republican Party an hour or so ago. I gave the lady calling a piece of my mind on this issue. I did it politely but I hope it registers. If Congressmen Boehner and Cantor can’t do better than this, I wonder how much difference it makes who is in the majority.
Maybe Mr Barton could have phrased his comments more artfully but IT WAS THE TRUTH !