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2006 Energy Archive:

20061222

Noteworthy - Japan- US - World - Auto - Technology - Workers - Politics - History - Fuel - "Toyota’s Sales Projections Show It Surpassing G.M.." ... "Toyota Motor said today it plans to sell 9.34 million vehicles next year, a figure that analysts said would put it ahead of troubled General Motors as the world’s largest auto company." ... "Toyota reported global group sales this year of 8.8 million cars and trucks, below G.M.’s 2006 sales forecast of 9.2 million vehicles. But the figures released today showed the two rival car giants on starkly different trajectories, with Toyota expecting to add a half million vehicle sales next year, at a time when G.M. is shuttering plants and laying off workers." ... "Surpassing G.M. would be a crowning achievement for Toyota, a company that got its start in the 1930s by reverse-engineering G.M. and Ford cars, and that spent decades catching up with Detroit. It would also end G.M.’s 81-year reign over the global auto industry, and mark another step in the rise of Asian carmakers." ... "Analysts also said reaching the top would not exhaust Toyota’s opportunities for growth. They said Toyota will continue to gain in the American market, where higher gas prices have increased the popularity of smaller, more fuel-efficient vehicles." ... "Toyota’s rise would also prove a victory of sorts for its unique corporate culture, the so-called Toyota Way, which is rooted in an obsession with craftsmanship and constant improvement, or “kaizen.”" -By Martin Fackler -NYTimes

20061110

US - Government - Iraq - Military - Intelligence - Privacy - Environment - Health - Seniors - Drugs - Oil - Industry- Legal - History - Missouri - "Democrats are set to subpoena: The new majority is expected to hold hearings on military spending and the Iraq war -- just for starters." ... "[Missouri Democrat] Rep. Ike Skelton knows what he will do in one of his first acts as chairman of the Armed Services Committee in the Democratic-led House: resurrect the subcommittee on oversight and investigations." ... "The panel was disbanded by the Republicans after they won control of Congress in 1994. Now, Skelton (D-Mo.) intends to use it as a forum to probe Pentagon spending and the Bush administration's conduct of the Iraq war." ... "With control of every committee in Congress starting in January, the new majority will inherit broad powers to subpoena and investigate. And that is expected to translate into wide-ranging and contentious hearings." ... "The agenda is likely to be dominated by the Iraq war, but could include probes into the Bush administration's warrantless surveillance, environmental policies and new prescription-drug program for seniors. Industries, such as oil companies, could also come under closer scrutiny." ... ""This could be remembered as a historically unique period in which an administration got immunity from Congress to engage in errors with impunity," said Charles Tiefer, a University of Baltimore law professor and a former House counsel." ... "Democrats are expected to bore into the Iraq war, including review of no-bid contracts for reconstruction, intelligence failures and decisions to ignore the advice of military commanders about troop levels." (1, 2) -By Richard B. Schmitt and Richard Simon -LAtimes

20061107

US - Iraq- Military - People - TV - Money - Oil - Politics - Japan - New York - "Rupert Murdoch -- who once predicted Iraq war could lead to $20/barrel oil --described war casualties as "minute"." ... "On November 6, News Corp. chairman and CEO Rupert Murdoch reportedly said at a conference in Tokyo [Japan] that U.S. casualties in Iraq, "by the terms of any previous war are quite minute," as the weblog Democratic Underground noted. He further stated: "I believe it was right to go in there. I believe that certainly the execution that has followed that has included many mistakes. But that's easy to say after the event." Murdoch, whose conservative media empire includes Fox News Channel, the New York Post, and The Weekly Standard, vocally supported the war in 2003, citing potential economic benefits. As of November 3, according to CNN, a total of 2,836 U.S. soldiers have been killed since the invasion of Iraq in March 2003." -MediaMatters.org

20061031

Energy - Money - Politics - Accounting - MA - "U.S. Drops Bid Over Royalties From Chevron." ... "The Interior Department has dropped claims that the Chevron Corporation systematically underpaid the government for natural gas produced in the Gulf of Mexico, a decision that could allow energy companies to avoid paying hundreds of millions of dollars in royalties." ... "The agency had ordered Chevron to pay $6 million in additional royalties but could have sought tens of millions more had it prevailed. The decision also sets a precedent that could make it easier for oil and gas companies to lower the value of what they pump each year from federal property and thus their payments to the government." ... "The reversal in the case, which involves Chevron’s accounting of natural gas sales to a company it partly owned, has renewed criticism that the Bush administration is reluctant to confront oil and gas companies and is lax in collecting royalties." ... "In return for the right to drill on federal lands and in federal waters, energy companies are required to pay the government a share of their proceeds. " ... "Administration officials knew that dozens of companies had incorrectly claimed exemptions from royalties since 2003, but they waited until December 2005 to send letters demanding about $500 million in repayments." ... "In February, the Interior Department acknowledged that oil companies could escape more than $7 billion in payments because of mistakes in leases signed in the 1990s." ... "In addition, four government auditors last month publicly accused the Interior Department of blocking their efforts to recover more than $30 million from the Shell Oil Corporation, the Kerr-McGee Corporation and other major companies." ... "“This latest revelation proves that the Bush administration is incapable of preventing big oil companies from cheating taxpayers,” said Representative Edward J. Markey of Massachusetts, a senior Democrat on the House Committee on Resources. “The public has been systematically fleeced out of royalties that these companies owe for the privilege of drilling for oil and gas on lands belonging to all of us.”" (1, 2) -By Edmund L. Andrews -NYTimes

20061026

Money - Consumer - History - "Exxon Mobile posts $10.49B profit." ... "Oil industry behemoth Exxon Mobil Corp. said Thursday its third-quarter earnings rose to $10.49 billion, the second-largest quarterly profit ever recorded by a publicly traded U.S. company." ... "The report comes as high crude prices this year have fueled record profits in the oil industry, triggering an outcry from consumers who were being asked to pay about $3 a gallon for gasoline in early August." ... "The largest quarterly profit ever was Exxon Mobil's $10.71 billion profit in the fourth quarter of 2005." ... "They may beat that next quarter, said Howard Silverblatt Standard & Poor's Senior Index Analyst. "Then in all likelihood they will be at that $40 billion mark for the year." That would put the company on track for the highest annual profit ever by a U.S. company. Exxon Mobil holds that record with a 2005 profit of $36.1 billion." -By Steve Quinn -AP via -DenverPost.com

20061018

US - Russia - Weldon - Family - Government - Money - Law - Energy - Politics - Pennsylvania - "Weldon's Ties to Serbian Businessman Part of Probe." ... "Officials at the U.S. Embassy in Belgrade were surprised three years ago to be invited to a luncheon in honor of visiting Rep. Curt Weldon (R-Pa. [Republican-Pennsylvania]), hosted by Bogoljub Karic, a wealthy Serbian businessman who had been barred from visiting or trading with the United States because of his close ties to former Yugoslav leader Slobodan Milosevic." ... "Weldon "was visiting solely because of Karic," whom he was trying to get off the U.S. blacklist, a former senior embassy official familiar with the visit concluded. "It seemed odd" at the time, because Karic had no obvious tie to Weldon's district outside Philadelphia [Pennsylvania], and Weldon should have known the embassy was shunning contacts with him, the official said." ... "What the embassy apparently did not know is that the Karic family that year signed a contract with Weldon's daughter, Karen, and a business partner that called for monthly payments of $20,000 for "management, government and public relations," according to a copy of the March 2003 contract. In all, the family paid Karen Weldon's firm $133,858 that year for efforts she undertook to set up a foundation for it." ... "Curt Weldon's visit and that deal are under investigation by the FBI, according to a law enforcement source familiar with the probe. His efforts to assist clients of his daughter's consulting firm in their dealings with the federal government are the focus of that probe, according to sources familiar with it." ... "Besides looking at Weldon's Karic connection, the FBI is examining the lawmaker's contacts with a Russian-managed oil and gas company, Itera International Energy Corp., the sources said." (1, 2) -By R. Jeffrey Smith and Carol D. Leonnig -with contributions by Lucy Shackelford and Madonna Lebling -WashingtonPost

20061016

US - Russia - Energy - Weldon - Money - Law - Politics - PA - Florida - "FBI raids four homes, two offices in Weldon probe." ... "FBI agents investigating U.S. Rep. Curt Weldon (R., Pa. [Republican, Pennsylvania]) conducted six raids this morning - including at the homes of his daughter and a longtime friend." ... "In Center City [Pennsylvania], agents searched the law office of John Gallagher, a Weldon friend who has conducted extensive business in Russia and former Soviet Republics." ... "In Media [Pennsylvania], agents searched the offices of the public relations firm formed by Weldon's longtime friend Charles P. Sexton Jr., and the congressman's daughter, Karen." ... "Sexton and Karen Weldon formed Solutions North America in 2002, and won $1 million in contracts from two Russian energy firms and a Serbian family with ties to Slobodan Milosevic." ... "FBI agents in Jacksonville, Fla. [Florida], raided the office of one of the Russian energy firms, Itera, and a private residence whose connection to the investigation was not disclosed." ... "" -By John Shiffman, Mitch Lipka and Patrick Kerkstra -Philly.com

20060901

Iran - Military - Energy - Technology - UN - "Highly Enriched Uranium Found at Iranian Plant." ... "The global nuclear monitoring agency deepened suspicions on Thursday about Iran’s nuclear program, reporting that inspectors had discovered new traces of highly enriched uranium at an Iranian facility." ... "Inspectors have found such uranium, which at extreme enrichment levels can fuel bombs, twice in the past. The International Atomic Energy Agency concluded that at least some of those samples came from contaminated equipment that Iran had obtained from Pakistan." ... "But in this case, the nuclear fingerprint of the particles did not match the other samples, an official familiar with the inspections said, raising questions about their origin." ... "In a six-page report to the United Nations Security Council on Thursday, the agency withheld judgment about where the material came from and whether it could be linked to a secret nuclear program." (1, 2) -By Elaine Sciolino with contributions by William J. Broad and David E. Sanger -NYTimes

20060831

Alaska - Oil - Company - Politics - "FBI searches offices of Alaska lawmakers: Legislators targeted in five locations as part of 'pending investigation'." ... "Federal agents raided the offices of at least six Alaska lawmakers [5 Republicans and 1 Democrat] Thursday in a search for any ties between the legislators and a large oil field services company, officials said." ... ""This morning, investigators from the FBI interviewed me in my office regarding an investigation of VECO [oil and construction corporation]," Rep. Vic Kohring, R-Wasilla, said in a prepared statement." ... "Agents conducted office searches in both Juneau and Anchorage belonging to Sen. John Cowdery, R-Anchorage, the Senate Rules Committee chairman." ... "The offices of Senate President Ben Stevens, R-Anchorage; Kohring; Rep. Bruce Weyhrauch, R-Juneau; Sen. Donald Olson, D-Nome; and Rep. Pete Kott, R-Eagle River also were searched." -AP via -MSNBC

20060817

Iraq - Weather - "Iraq doubles funding for oil imports." ... "Iraq has doubled the money allocated for importing oil products in August and September to tackle the country's worst fuel shortage since Saddam Hussein's 2003 ouster, a senior Iraqi official said Thursday." ... "Iraq has been plagued by periodic fuel shortages since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion. The current crisis comes amid higher demand for fuel to power generators and cool homes and offices as summer temperatures reach 120 degrees." -AP via -HoustonChronicle.com

20060804

DCI - Marketing - Oil - Corporation - Politics - Global - Climate - Internet - Computer- Entertainment - - Environment - Al Gore - "Al Gore YouTube Spoof Not So Amateurish: Republican PR [public relations] Firm Said to Be Behind 'Inconvenient Truth' Spoof." ... "A tiny little movie making fun of Al Gore, supposedly made by an amateur filmmaker, recently appeared on the popular Web site YouTube.com." ... "At first blush, the spoof seemed like a scrappy little homemade film poking fun at Gore and his anti-global warming crusade." ... "The film actually came from a slick Republican public relations firm called DCI, which just happens to have oil giant Exxon as a client." ... "Public relations firms have long used computer technology to create bogus grassroots campaigns, which are called "Astroturf."" ... "Now these firms are being hired to push illusions on the Internet to create the false impression of real people blogging, e-mailing and making films. " (1, 2) -By Jake Tapper and Max Culhane -ABCNEWS.com

20060803

DCI - Marketing - Psychology - Oil - Corporation - Politics - Opinion - Internet - Video - California - Entertainment - Media - Search Engine - Computer - Communications - EMail - Environmental - Science - Global - Climate - Al Gore - "Where did that video spoofing Gore's film come from?" ... "Everyone knows Al Gore stars in the global warming documentary "An Inconvenient Truth." But who created "Al Gore's Penguin Army," a two-minute video now playing on YouTube.com?" ... "Like other videos on the popular YouTube site, it has a home-made, humorous quality. The video's maker is listed as "Toutsmith," a 29-year-old who identifies himself as being from Beverly Hills [California] in an Internet profile." ... "In an email exchange with The Wall Street Journal, Toutsmith didn't answer when asked who he was or why he made the video, which has just over 59,000 views on YouTube. However, computer routing information contained in an email sent from Toutsmith's Yahoo account indicate it didn't come from an amateur working out of his basement." ... "Instead, the email originated from a computer registered to DCI Group, a Washington, D.C., public relations and lobbying firm whose clients include oil company Exxon Mobil Corp [Corporation]." ... "The anti-Gore video represents a less well-known side of YouTube. As its popularity has exploded, the public video-sharing site has drawn marketers looking to build buzz for new music releases and summer blockbusters. Now, it's being tapped by political operatives, public relations experts and ad agencies to sway opinions." ... "DCI is no stranger to the debate over global warming. Partly through Tech Central Station, an opinion Web site it operates, DCI has sought to raise doubts about the science of global warming and about Mr. Gore's film, placing skeptical scientists on talk-radio shows and paying them to write editorials." ... "Internet videos could prove particularly potent, because they may influence watchers in ways they don't realize. Nancy Snow, a communications professor at California State University, Fullerton, viewed the penguin video and calls it a lesson in "Propaganda 101." It contains no factual information, but presents a highly negative image of the former vice president, she says. The purpose of such images is to harden the views of those who already view Mr. Gore negatively, Dr. Snow says." ... "Traffic to the penguin video, first posted on YouTube.com in May, got a boost from prominently placed sponsored links that appeared on the Google search engine when users typed in "Al Gore" or "Global Warming." The ads, which didn't indicate who had paid for them, were removed shortly after The Wall Street Journal contacted DCI Group on Tuesday." -By Antonio Regalado and Dionne Searcey with contributions by Jeffrey Ball -WSJ.com via -Post-Gazette.com

20060728

California - Elderly - Disaster - Energy - Food - Work - Water - Animal - Oregon - Wildfire- "At least 132 deaths likely linked to heat Calif. heat wave." ... "At least 132 deaths, mostly elderly residents, were likely linked to a nearly two-week heat wave in California, county coroner's offices reported Friday." ... "Both Northern and Southern California had been gripped by triple-digit temperatures since July 16, with the Central Valley suffering the most with temperatures as high as 115." ... "Before this week, the utility's highest peak energy use was recorded at 5,661 megawatts. The heat wave created a demand of 6,165 megawatts — shocking officials who predicted usage wouldn't top 6,100 megawatts for another four years." ... "In Northern California, a wildfire near the Oregon state line was threatening major power transmission lines between California and the Pacific Northwest." ... "Farmers have been struggling as well, trying get work crews into the fields in the early mornings to avoid the worst of the heat and running water misters to keep cattle from dying. Vegetables, fruit and even wine grapes could be affected." -By Olivia Munoz -AP via -SFGate.com

20060727

World - Oil - Consumers - "UPDATE 2-Exxon Mobil profit tops $10 bln on soaring prices." ... "Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM.N: Quote, Profile, Research), the world's largest public oil company, on Thursday reported quarterly profit surged 35 percent to top $10 billion, driven by yet another quarter of sharply higher oil prices." ... "Revenue jumped 12 percent to $99.03 billion, from $88.57 billion a year earlier." ... "The company's latest results are sure to reignite calls for windfall profit taxes on Big Oil companies, who have come under attack over the past year for posting record profits as consumers struggle with soaring gasoline prices." -Reuters

20060726

Company - "ConocoPhillips 2Q Profit Climbs." ... "ConocoPhillips pumped more oil and gas and commanded sharply higher prices for its energy in the second quarter, boosting its profits by 65 percent to more than $5 billion." ... "The nation's third-largest oil company earned $5.18 billion, or $3.09 per share, compared with $3.14 billion, or $2.21 per share, in the second quarter of 2005." ... "Revenue only rose 12.6 percent, to $47.1 billion, highlighting how staggeringly high profit margins for oil, gasoline and other fuels accounted for the bulk of ConocoPhillips' _ and, for that matter, the entire industry's _ second quarter bonanza." ... "Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial forecast profits of $36 billion for the world's six largest oil companies. But judging by the performances of ConocoPhillips and BP PLC, which reported a $7.3 billion profit on Tuesday, those estimates could be too low." -By Kristen Hays -AP via -HoustonChronicle.com

20060715

Connecticut - Energy - Seniors - Law - "Evaluating Lieberman: A Party Guy?" ... "By the numbers, Joe Lieberman is a true, consistent Democrat." ... "He votes with Democratic colleagues almost all the time. His record gets him high marks from interest groups close to the party, from the AFL-CIO to the NAACP." ... "But dig beneath the votes and there's plenty of ammunition for critics - including primary challenger Ned Lamont - who say Lieberman has a habit of straying from the party when it suits him." ... "He broke with the region's Democratic senators on a key energy vote last year. He has embraced a position on Iraq that few Democrats share. He has questioned bedrock Democrat-backed programs such as affirmative action and Social Security. He voted against a filibuster that could have blocked the nomination of Supreme Court Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr." ... "And just this week the senator launched his own political party so he can still run in November even if Democratic voters rebuff him in the Aug. 8 primary." -By David Lightman -Courant.com

20060712

Oil - Industry - Law - Water - Environmentalists - Florida - Tourism - "Senate approves expanded drilling in Gulf of Mexico." ... "U.S. Senate leaders announced a compromise Wednesday that would expand oil and gas drilling in the Gulf of Mexico by millions of acres, but keep exploration at least 125 miles from Florida's western shoreline." ... "The agreement was announced by Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn., Domenici, R-N.M., [Florida Republican Senator Mel] Martinez and lawmakers from other coastal states. Frist said it tries to strike a balance by tapping oil and gas reserves in the Gulf of Mexico while also protecting Florida's multibillion-dollar tourism industry." ... "But others were not so sure. Environmentalists are against expanding any exploration in the Gulf. They also note that the Senate plan would allow offshore development in an area of the eastern Gulf known as Lease Sale 181, where government bans have kept drilling off limits." ... "The House's energy-exploration bill that passed last month is much more comprehensive than the Senate's, which focuses on drilling only in the Gulf of Mexico. The House bill sets a 50-mile drilling buffer throughout the entire U.S. coast, but would allow state Legislatures to expand that barrier to 100 miles." -By Mark K. Matthews -OrlandoSentinel via -MercuryNews

20060706

World - Fuel - Ocean - Animals - Food - Science - Seattle - Washington - "High acidity infiltrates the oceans." ... "Corals and shelled sea creatures face an uncertain future in oceans made increasingly corrosive by the industrial emissions that fuel global warming, a government report warned Wednesday." ... "Human activities, chiefly the burning of fossil fuels, have upset a natural balance in ocean acidity, concludes the report called Impacts of Ocean Acidification on Coral Reefs and Other Marine Calcifiers: A Guide for Future Research." ... "From corals to sea snails to microscopic plankton, the creatures affected underpin many ocean food chains, say the authors of the report, a document reflecting the views of 50 top experts in ocean chemistry. The research was sponsored by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and other federal agencies." ... ""We have very clear evidence, and there is no doubt this is occurring," says report co-author Richard Feely of the NOAA Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory in Seattle [Washington]." -By Dan Vergano -USATODAY

20060705

Fuel - World - Animals - Ocean - Science - History - "Report Warns about Carbon Dioxide Threats to Marine Life." ... "Worldwide emissions of carbon dioxide from fossil fuel burning are dramatically altering ocean chemistry and threatening marine organisms, including corals, that secrete skeletal structures and support oceanic biodiversity. A landmark report released today summarizes the known effects of increased atmospheric carbon dioxide on these organisms, known as marine calcifiers, and recommends future research for determining the extent of the impacts." ... ""It is clear that seawater chemistry will change in coming decades and centuries in ways that will dramatically alter marine life," says Joan Kleypas, the report's lead author and a scientist at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) in Boulder. "But we are only beginning to understand the complex interactions between large-scale chemistry changes and marine ecology. It is vital to develop research strategies to better understand the long-term vulnerabilities of sensitive marine organisms to these changes."" ... "The report, "Impacts of Ocean Acidification on Coral Reefs and Other Marine Calcifiers," warns that oceans worldwide absorbed approximately 118 billion metric tons of carbon between 1800 and 1994. Oceans are naturally alkaline, and they are expected to remain so, but the interaction with carbon dioxide is making them less alkaline and more acidic. The increased acidity lowers the concentration of carbonate ion, a building block of the calcium carbonate that many marine organisms use to grow their skeletons and create coral reef structures." ... ""This is leading to the most dramatic changes in marine chemistry in at least the past 650,000 years," says Richard Feely, one of the authors and an oceanographer at NOAA's Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory (PMEL) in Seattle." -UCAR.edu
World - Animals - Ocean - Environment - Health - Fuel - [9.5 MB PDF] - "Impacts of Ocean Acidification on Coral Reefs and Other Marine Calcifiers: A Guide for Future Research." [+] ... "Research findings of the past decade have led to mounting concern that rising atmo-spheric carbon dioxide (CO2) concentrations will cause changes in the ocean’s carbonate chemistry system, and that those changes will affect some of the most fundamental biological and geochemical processes of the sea. Thanks to the efforts of large-scale physical and biogeochemical ocean programs such as WOCE, JGOFS, and OACES, ocean-wide changes in the carbonate system are now well documented. Since 1980 ocean uptake of the excess CO2 released by anthropogenic activities is significant; about a third has been stored in the oceans. The rate of atmo- spheric CO2 increase, however, far exceeds the rate at which natural feedbacks can restore the system to normal conditions. Oceanic uptake of CO2 drives the carbonate system to lower pH and lower saturation states of the carbonate minerals calcite, arago-nite, and high-magnesium calcite, the materials used to form supporting skeletal structures in many major groups of marine organisms." -By Joan A. Kleypas, Richard A. Feely, Victoria J. Fabry, Chris Langdon, , Christopher L. Sabine, Lisa L. Robbins and et. al. -UCAR.edu
Ken Lay - Enron - Energy - Business - Accounting - Law - Colorado - "Enron's Founder Kenneth Lay, 64, Dies in Colorado (Update9)." ... "Kenneth Lay, who built Enron Corp. into the world's largest energy trader and was convicted of the fraud that led to its collapse, died today near Aspen, Colorado. He was 64." ... "Lay's defense lawyer Mike Ramsey said through a spokeswoman that his client died ``from what appears to have been a heart attack.''" ... "Lay and his successor as Enron's chief executive officer, Jeffrey Skilling, 52, were convicted May 25 of spearheading the fraud that plunged Enron into bankruptcy in December 2001. Lay and Skilling were scheduled to be sentenced in October. Lay, who was also convicted of bank fraud, was facing the rest of his life in federal prison." ... "Enron's implosion from accounting fraud wiped out more than 5,000 jobs and $1 billion in employee pensions virtually overnight. Shareholders claimed more than $25 billion in losses as a result of the crime." -By Andrew Dunn -Bloomberg

20060622

Fuel - Air - Health- Environment - Law - "EPA: Special Fuels Not to Blame for Costs: EPA Report Concludes 'Boutique' Fuels Not Culprit in Climbing Gas Prices As Bush Has Suggested." ... "Facing growing public outrage over soaring gasoline prices, Bush ordered the study on April 25 in a speech in which he attributed high gas prices in part to the growth of special fuels." ... "But the task force found otherwise, according to its report to be released possibly as early as Friday." ... "According to a late draft, obtained Thursday by The Associated Press, the task force concludes that suggestions of a connection between boutique fuels and supply or price concerns cannot be supported." ... "The state-required fuels "have served an important role" in helping states meet federal air quality standards, the report said, and will be equally important in meeting future clean air requirements." (1, 2) -By H. Josef Hebert -AP via -ABCNEWS.com

20060613

Karl Rove - Oil - Industry - Political - Water - Science - Law - "EPA Rule Loosened After Oil Chief's Letter to Rove: The White House says the executive's appeal had no role in changing a measure to protect groundwater. Critics call it a political payoff." ... "A rule designed by the Environmental Protection Agency to keep groundwater clean near oil drilling sites and other construction zones was loosened after White House officials rejected it amid complaints by energy companies that it was too restrictive and after a well-connected Texas oil executive appealed to White House senior advisor Karl Rove." ... "The new rule, which took effect Monday, came after years of intense industry pressure, including court battles and behind-the-scenes agency lobbying. But environmentalists vowed Monday that the fight was not over, distributing internal White House documents that they said portrayed the new rule as a political payoff to an industry long aligned with the Republican Party and President Bush." ... "Environmentalists pointed to the Rove correspondence as evidence that the Bush White House, more than others, has mixed politics with policy decisions that are traditionally left to scientists and career regulators." (1, 2) -By Tom Hamburger and Peter Wallsten -LAtimes

20060612

Hacker - Government - Nuclear - Energy - Computer - Identity Theft - New Mexico - "Energy Dept. Tells Workers of Data Theft." ... "Energy Department officials have informed nearly 1,500 individuals that their Social Security numbers and other information may have been compromised when a hacker gained entry to a department computer system eight months ago, a spokesman said Monday." ... "The computer theft occurred last September, but Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman and his deputy, Clay Sell, were not informed of it until last week. It was first publicly disclosed at a congressional hearing on Friday." ... "The file that was compromised contained the names, Social Security numbers, security clearance levels and place of employment of 1,502 people working throughout the government nuclear weapons complex [in New Mexico]." -H. Josef Herbert -AP via -HoustonChronicle.com

20060610

Hacker - Government - Nuclear - Energy - Military - Intelligence - Computer - Identity Theft - N.M. - "DOE computers hacked; info on 1,500 taken." ... "A hacker stole a file containing the names and Social Security numbers of 1,500 people working for the Energy Department's nuclear weapons agency." ... "The data theft occurred in a computer system at a service center belonging to the National Nuclear Security Administration in Albuquerque, N.M. The file contained information about contract workers throughout the agency's nuclear weapons complex, a department spokesman said." ... "NNSA Administrator Linton Brooks told a House hearing that he learned of the security breach late last September, but did not inform Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman about it. It had occurred earlier that month." ... "Brooks blamed a misunderstanding for the failure to inform either Bodman or Deputy Energy Secretary Clay Sell about the security breach. Brooks' NNSA is a semiautonomous agency within the department and he said he assumed DOE's counterintelligence office would have briefed the two senior officials." -By H. Josef Herbert -AP via -BusinessWeek

20060521

- John Edwards - Cheney - Noteworthy - 2008 Election - "Edwards Bashes Cheney, Bush: 2004 vice presidential contender blasts Bush and readies to run again." -With George Stephanopoulos -ThisWeek-ABCNEWS.com
US - Iraq - Edwards - Cheney - Disaster - Energy - Health - Government - Intelligence - Law - History - 2008 Election - NC - "Edwards: Bush Worse than Nixon." ... "Former Sen. John Edwards, D-N.C., says George W. Bush is the "worst president of our lifetime," and "absolutely" worse than Watergate-tainted President Richard M. Nixon." ... "In an exclusive appearance on "This Week with George Stephanopoulos," the former presidential and vice presidential contender said of Bush, "He's done a variety of things -- things which are going to take us forever to recover from." ... ""You have to give Bush and Cheney and gang credit for being good at politics -- you know, good at political campaigns," Edwards added. "They're very good at dividing the country and taking advantage of it. What they're not good at is governing, and it shows every single day in this administration. And the country is paying a huge price for that."" ... ""It is not an accident that he's [Vice President Cheney] unbelievably poorly thought of," Edwards said. "He is one of -- if not the --principal architects of this disaster in Iraq. He put us on an energy path that the American people are paying an enormous price for right now. He paid little to no attention to making sure the government was prepared to respond to the kind of disaster that hit our Gulf Coast. We've got a health care crisis going on, he's had no proposal of any kind that I know of. And people don't trust him anymore, which is understandable. I wouldn't trust him."" ... "Edwards made the pitch for a Democratic president in 2008, claiming the Bush has "intentionally ignored" the law and constitution in the NSA wiretapping controversy." (1, 2, 3, 4) -By Ed O'Keefe-ABCNEWS.com

20060511

Oil - Business - College - 2006 Election - Calif - NY - "Senate votes to extend $70 billion in tax cuts." ... "The Senate voted Thursday to extend $70 billion in tax cuts but heatedly clashed over whether the plan would continue to boost the economy and create jobs or would penalize middle-income families in favor of the wealthy and big oil conglomerates." ... "Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., noted that a person who earns more than $1 million a year would get a tax break worth $41,977." ... ""Well, you might say, `What does someone who earns $41,000 get back?' $46. Not even enough to fill up your gas tank in some cases," she said. "Whose side is the Senate on?"" ... "Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., the chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, noted that Republicans decided to drop a provision allowing Americans to deduct up to $4,000 in college tuition costs worth $4.5 billion." ... "Instead, Schumer pointed out, Republicans included a tax break for oil companies worth $4.3 billion despite the industry's record profits." ... ""The choice is stark and clear - big oil or middle-class families," Schumer said. "The Republican Congress chose big oil and that's why voters want change."" -By Jill Zuckman with contributions by William Neikirk -ChicagoTribune via -MercuryNews

20060505

Gas - Car - Company - Environment - Alaska - Water - "Conflicting Loyalties as Republicans Confront High Gas Prices." ... "Under pressure to deal with high gasoline prices, President Bush and Republican leaders in Congress are struggling to marry a newfound zeal for energy conservation with their traditional loyalty to big cars and Big Oil." ... "Meanwhile, Republican lawmakers are also renewing their wish list for the oil industry — opening the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge [Alaska] for exploration and drilling, as well as millions of additional acres in the Gulf of Mexico and along the Atlantic Coast. They are also blocking calls for a windfall profits tax on the major oil companies." ... "The political pressures created by soaring gasoline prices have pulled Republicans in Congress and the administration in different directions. While blocking higher taxes on the oil industry, for example, the While House and Senate Republicans are likely to try to eliminate or at least cut back on $2 billion in tax incentives for oil and gas drilling that Congress passed less than a year ago." ... "At the same time, unlike Democrats, Republican lawmakers have repeatedly defeated proposals for higher fuel-economy requirements on passenger cars. Indeed, in the 2004 presidential election, they ridiculed such proposals as job-losing Democratic ideas." ... "In five years, House Republicans have defeated three bills to raise the average fuel efficiency of cars to 33 miles a gallon, from 27.5." -By Edmund L. Andrews -NYTimes

20060428

Iran - Military - Energy - Technology - Intelligence - UN - "Nuclear Agency Says Iran Defying U.N.." ... "The United Nations' atomic monitoring agency reported Friday that Iran continues to expand its uranium enrichment technology and to hold back information that would allow inspectors to determine whether a covert military nuclear program exists." ... "The report by the Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency said Iran is conducting an enrichment program in defiance of U.N. Security Council demands to halt it. Agency inspectors who visited Iranian sites observed construction of additional centrifuges for expanding uranium enrichment operations, the report said." -By Molly Moore -WashingtonPost
Iran - Nuclear - Military - Energy - UN - "Iran says does not "give a damn" about UN resolution." ... "Iran's president said on Friday his country would pay no attention to international calls to halt its nuclear work, hours before the U.N. atomic watchdog reports on whether Tehran has met U.N. Security Council demands." ... ""Those who want to prevent Iranians from obtaining their right, should know that we do not give a damn about such resolutions," Mahmoud Ahmadinejad told a rally in northwest Iran, the official IRNA news agency reported." -Reuters.co.uk

20060425

Oil - Companies - Law - California - "Calif. Assembly Committee OKs Oil Tax Bill." ... "A bill that would slap a windfall profits tax on California oil producers was approved by a state Assembly committee as gasoline prices surged past $3 a gallon." ... "The bill's sponsor, Assemblyman Johan Klehs, a Democrat, accused oil companies of taking advantage of the Gulf Coast devastation caused last year by hurricanes Katrina and Rita." -By Steve Lawrence -AP via -SFGate.com

20060424