Bush administration: No outsiders helped energy panel

[Newsjock]

Adds link
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/news/archive/2004/02/06/national1844EST0772.DTL
Bush administration: No outsiders helped energy panel
By ANNE GEARAN
Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) - No energy industry officials participated improperly in Vice President Dick Cheney's closed-door meetings to develop the White House energy policy, the Bush administration told the Supreme Court.

The administration is fighting to keep records of the energy policy meetings secret. Environmental and government watchdog groups sued to learn details of the task force's work, including whether any industry bigwigs such as former Enron chief Kenneth Lay were involved.

Lay and others were not official members, but the administration's critics want to find out if they were unofficial members.

In this case, an "inquiry into whether any outside individual, whether intentionally or not, crossed a poorly defined line and became a de facto member," would come up empty, Solicitor General Theodore Olson wrote in a Supreme Court filing Thursday night.

[Beetwasher]

1. Then What's the Problem? Release the Records!

What have you got to hide?

Scalia: That's good enough for me! See you on our next Hunting trip!

[sonias]

2. Depends on how they define "improperly"..

I'm sure. They aren't saying no participating just no improper participation.

Yeah right.

Sonia

[stevedeshazer]

3. Note the parsed language

Headline reads: No outsiders helped energy panel

Text reads: No energy industry officials participated improperly

Big difference.

[displacedtexan]

4. Things are fine on planet Oh, Right, Sure.

whether intentionally or not yada yada yada, my ass.

[salinen]

7. Man, they must be hiding something juicy!

otherwise those meetings should be as public as things get. Maybe they should be televised as those "officials" are our employees.

[Tripper11]

5. Just because they say it, they think we will believe them?

Seriously...they seem to think this is how it works.
For every damn lie they've told, this administration simply says, "we say this, we say that, and that's all there is to it"
I call SHENANIGANS!! Enough already.
Every single person involved in this administration is dirty somehow and they need to be held to account.
We need a special prosecuter!

[Occulus]

20. ROFL

you called shenanigans.

[seasat]

6. Bush adminstration is honest in this according the headline.

To them, none of the energy executives are considered outsiders.

[MasonJar]

8. What's improper to them is not the same definition I see in the

dictionary. There are so many investigations of this administration that it is hard to keep abreast of all their criminal acts.

[DoYouEverWonder]

9. They didn't need to bring in outsiders

Most of the energy execs were given high level jobs within the Bu$h administration.

[maxsolomon]

10. what they discussed would scare the crap out of america

basically, peak oil.

how to get more of the world's oil for ourselves before it is all used up. and what happens to the economy if we don't.

people don't like the truth & they know it. i believe there would be a panic.

[evworldeditor]

12. Bingo!

I'd lay odds you're exactly on the money. Matt Simmons has been warning about peak oil for sometime now and he was on Cheney's energy task force.

I came across a Pentagon study of the logistical problems of the first Gulf War a couple months back. Written in 1997 during the last legitimately elected presidency, I believe they cited 2010 as the projected year for global oil peak. More recently the "peakers" are starting to suggest 2007.

And you're absolutely right, most American's won't see this coming when it hits, despite all the warnings. There will be lots of excuses, fall-guys, and a rush for efficient cars, finally killing the US auto industry, as Toyota becomes number one, replacing GM.

[formactv]

11. READ THE BOOK

The Price of Loyalty-#1` NYT Bestseller!

[gbwarming]

15. #9 on Amazon, up from #11 last night. Yeaaaagh! nt

[leesa]

13. Maybe not, but Dick Cheney participated improperly and is

withholding public records that prove it.

[pacifictiger]

14. lets see

saddam is preventing us from looking at his records so he must be guilty.
cheney is preventing us from looking at his records so he must be innocent.
Say What?

[salin]

16. and it took nearly three years to state this?

a) it is not credible.
b) paid lobbyists that directly represent the energy company leader are the same thing.
c) if this were true, why the fight to keep it secret?

[priller]

17. According to O'Neill's book (IIRC)

the way slick Dick got around the open records requirement was by making the energy meeting an "internal staff meeting", that is, no outsider was in the closed door session. However, industry bigwigs and lobbyists were outside the door, and Cheney and other staff members were constantly going in and out from the room.

In my opinion, Cheney did cross that "poorly defined line", and even though technically they weren't behind closed doors, they most certainly were "de facto members" of the meeting.

[bpilgrim]

18. ENRON PICKS Chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission...

WASHINGTON (AP) - Former Enron Chairman Kenneth Lay, a friend and backer of President Bush, gave the White House recommendations for appointment to a federal energy commission last spring. Bush eventually appointed two of the people on Enron's list.

Lay gave the list of names to Clay Johnson, Bush's personnel director, White House spokeswoman Anne Womack said Thursday. Among the eight or so names were Pat Wood, now chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, and Nora Brownell, a member of the commission.

...MORE AT:
http://globalfreepress.com/enronomics.shtml


they just RAN the friggin show and were invited to ALL the parties

Remember the USS Greeneville?



The Japanese boat left only an oil slick, rafts, and scattered debris by the time Coast Guard rescuers arrived on the scene.



Survivors of the collision, who were aboard the Japanese fishing boat Ehime Maru, are rescued by the U.S. Coast Guard off Honolulu, Hawaii, on Friday.

more...
http://www.mainichi.co.jp/english/news/archive/200102/11/news01.html

just ask waxman he KNOWS!

waxman should be on ALL the news outlets DAILY imo but i would settle for once a week :evilgrin:

psst... pass the word ;->

peace

[FlaGranny]

19. Depends on who you consider outsiders.

I'd guess that outsiders mean no one outside their circle of associates. Makes sense then to say no outsiders.