Target: Joe Manchin, Chairman of Senate Committee on Energy & Natural Resources
Goal: Investigate fossil fuel companies for misleading public and for active attempts to sabotage climate-related efforts.
An estimated one billion marine lives boiled to death in the Pacific Northwest heat waves. One town very nearly reached the hottest temperature ever recorded on Earth, and a raging Oregon wildfire continues its dangerous expansion. Across the world, Europe was hit with an unprecedented amount of flooding that drenched some countries with two months’ worth of rain in just two days. Hundreds have died, and thousands more remain missing in Germany alone. German leaders gravely announced that “climate change has come” and doubled down on a commitment to combat global warming. All of the above real-world tragedies show that climate change is too tame a word. We are in the midst of a climate crisis. Meanwhile, fossil fuel companies in America are giving tutorials on how to derail the fight for climate justice.
A recent expose with undercover advocates revealed that despite its public support for some clean energy policies, Exxon executives have been very busy behind the scenes lobbying against just about every proposed climate initiative. In secretly taped snippets, the execs seemingly bragged about their recruitment and leveraging of politicians on both sides of the aisle. One of the executives is on video saying: “the 2022 class is focused on reelection, so I know I have them.” Another portion of the recording has the executive lamenting about a proposed large-scale infrastructure package: “green energy and renewable technologies, and…retrofitting federal buildings…it’s going to accelerate the transition to the extent that, I think, four years from now, it’s going to be difficult to unwind that.” The same executive decried that he might lose his big corporate tax break in the process.
He also celebrated the company’s successes with the previous administration: “you know, the wins are such that it would be difficult to categorize them all.” Further, the executive admits…“did we aggressively fight against some of the science?…did we join some of these shadow groups to work against some of the early efforts? Yes, that’s true.”
The organization responsible for this expose has called on Congress to launch an immediate investigation into Exxon and other fossil fuel conglomerates for their “climate crimes.” Sign the petition below to join them in this demand for accountability.
PETITION LETTER:
Dear Senator Manchin,
“Exxon vs. the American people”: this is how Greenpeace’s Unearthed branch characterized the recently released recordings of Exxon executives bragging about how they were gaming Washington and its leaders. The characterization is more than fitting. On which side does the Senate rest?
After laying out how they target vulnerable politicians, actively discredit science with disinformation, and sabotage every piece of legislation that might have a chance of succeeding, these special interest super soldiers end their secretly taped confession with, “[climate change] doesn’t affect people’s everyday lives.” Say that to the families who lost loved ones to heat waves, floods, those supposedly minor forest fires, and too many other man-made tragedies to name.
The House has already called on these bad actors to testify before an investigatory committee. Please join them in these efforts so that this destructive special interest and its toxic influence is rooted out of decision-making that impacts us all.
Sincerely,
[Your Name Here]
Photo Credit: ArtHouse Studio
It is difficult to imagine anything more obscene than a small cluster of well placed big shots selling out the future of this entire planet for the sake of their corporate bonuses.
Well said!!
Exactly, and it is unconscionable. This should be regarded as worse than murder or even treason because those are merely against one person, a few people or a country. What these idiots are doing is akin to throttling the life out of the planet and making the lives of every living being in every country across the world a nightmare. How selfish and stupid can these people be?
I’m sorry Senator manchineel but Exxon is not our friend. I had thousands of shares I got rid of over a year ago when even I could see the writing on the wall. They will become irrelevant if they don’t invest in clean energy and phase out fossil fuels which are destroying our planet. Don’t poo poo me. The whole country (maybe the world) is watching you and so far you’re just beginning to look like another politician bending over for big GOP donors. Shame on you. You think you’re safe in your state? That can change. Just watch us.
Look at your politicians who are climate change deniers. They are getting bribes from these oil corporations.
These executives at Exxon should forthwith get FIRED! Greedy, unscrupulous scumbags.
I hope you all get what you deserve after you testify! …which is jailed, fired ….
Well said!!
To all of you that think you can change the climate by not drilling…first of all do some fact checking and see what we use that requires oil to make how about the batteries in your phone or your electric cars and so much more the list is endless..and don’t attack Joe..but if you need to go on the attack go after China or India the countries that have no regulations to help keep pollution down..this country does everything to keep our air clean and our waters clean ..go after the countries that dump their trash in the oceans so we can stop blaming the companies that make bottled water or straws it isn’t them it’s what happens after their use..and that includes the people that use these items and who dumps them in the ocean..we need oil that is not the issue the issue is what we do with the stuff it makes..look around there is trash everywhere that’s what ruins the environment..this country has so many environmental regulations it puts businesses out of business..please do some fact checking before hopping on the band wagon.
I see that Greenwashing has found another idiot to do its talking for it…. The fact is that the country you are in does about 4% recycling, the rest either goes to landfill or incineration…It used to be a little more until a few years ago when china stopped taking our rubbish… Yup, thats right, our recycling involved loading all our rubbish onto cargo ships and dumping it in China or in India, the countries that as you say, have no regulations. As to the plastic straw comment, really? Surely you see that for what it is, pissing on someone that’s on fire and claiming you are helping them. It’s a start, sure… It is also a sop to show that ‘yes, business does care about the planet’. My local shop now sells pasta straws, as if somehow after drinking your beverage, you will boil and eat the straw… Nearly a billion people going hungry and industry has just invented disposable food to replace plastic straws.
Ask yourself, at what price will you believe Exxon over scientist. You are a fool and an idiot to not see what has already happened to our Earth. All of this is due to believing big companies that put their profit over our future. Exxon has already shown their lack of concern for the damage they do! March of 1989 was the worst ecological disaster of it’s time, which they caused. They care nothing about the environment. Nor do they care who or what the cost is to get they way.
I have children and grandchildren. There is no way their future should be left to the liars and idiots. The liars are big corporations, big companies. The idiots are the ones that believe them…
Please educate yourselves… Read up on how clean and green alternative energies really are. Almost all are not. Love him or hate him.. . Michael Moore has done an interesting documentary on clean energy and how dirty and destructive it really is.