Blunt Defends Exxon's Record Profits: An "American Company Made Money"

Think Progress:

Yesterday, House Minority Whip Roy Blunt (R-MO) appeared on a C-SPAN Newsmakers roundtable and defended Exxon Mobil's recent record-setting quarterly profit of $11.7 billion. Blunt tried to minimize the wealth and influence of Exxon, then went on to blast the company's critics, saying they should be overjoyed that an "American company made money":

[T]hey're the 14th biggest oil company in the world, and the only U.S. company in the top 20. So in all likelihood, the 13 companies bigger than them made a whole more money than that, and that all went somewhere besides the United States. That went to Saudi Arabia, that went to Russia. [...]

We can complain all we want to about American stockholders and American company made money. That's what our friends want to do -- the Democrats.

Read the whole story: Think Progress

Comments

[Heavenhelpusall]

Well then he should be in full support of giving some of those profits back to the American people who provided them.

[atomic]

THE GOP : CRIMINAL FRONT OPERATION

The GOP is basically a front operation for the rich. It operates to protect their money and privilege while simultaneously grinding the poor into the dirt. All the while claiming justification and superiority.

Never mind that none of their money or accomplishments could have been gained without the people they keep crushed at the bottom. That's just too inconvenient for them to consider.

They look at their big houses and their children and believe themselves to be good human beings but in reality they are devils responsible for murder and death.

[heal57]

This is all true, but I have little faith in most democrats in Congress. We need two term senate seats; twelve years is enough for anyone in power. Get them all the hell out after 2 terms, both parties. This business of making a lifetime career out of politics has got to go. It is in conflict with the desires of the American people; that's right, US!

[OlderBudWeiser]

Spot on Atomic! GOP is a front for big oil. Look at the current administration.

[whiteboyblues]

Yes indeed!

[bosshogg]

awwww how nice............

[jsgaetano]

Well let's check the record:

When your expenses go up, it's generally common for your profits to decline. Look at the airline/travel industry, the food industry, manufacturing, etc. It even "trickles down" the backs of other industries, like restaurants, bars, and hotels, which generally have a sizable customer base through tourism, so less travel means less money.

However, in an amazing defiance of the laws of economics, the oil industry's costs have gone up... and yet so has their profit.

[Gina322]

Amazing indeed

[gappedtoothgodwarrior]

"and that all went somewhere besides the United States. "

As did the Exxon profits; Switzerland, the Cayman Islands...

[demfriend]

One more time.....This false pride in an American company making billions of profits off of us while we are struggling is horrid. That I don't have a job and cannot afford the gas to go find one and even if I did who would pay for the gas to get there until my first check? The truckers going out of business because of fuel prices and the markets increasing the costs of food because of the increase in fuel prices all making it so we cannot afford the basic food we need. No extras. No vacations. Who will lose their jobs next due to no one affording the goods and services and vacations? It is call gouging and in California we already had this with the electricity a few years back. They proved gouging then but while we have two oil men in the top jobs of the country and Mccain being given huge amounts for his change of heart about off shore drilling should warn us that no one will be watching out and asking questions this time. I am not proud of the Oil companies making record profits for it hurts me and I have no way out of where I am.

[Pingolo]

Highway robbery...

[spiderbucket]

They OWN you, Blunt. They don't own us. Yet.

[lvdragonlady]

Made money my @ss. They have totally screwed the American people.
Hey everyone, buy your oil from some other station besides exxon, maybe they will get the hint.

[demfriend]

So an "American" company made some money??? Billions more profits in the past few months while we without jobs cannot even afford to fill our tanks to go looking and if we did find a job how can we afford the gas to get there before the first paycheck? Sure they made "some money" while truckers go belly up and the price of food and goods is going beyond what we can afford for the very basics. How about the vactions we cannot go on because of the gas prices? How many vacation spots will go belly up due to no tourists? Having an "American" company make profit in the billions when we are seeing our dollars become the equal of two quarters if we are lucky isn't success to me. It is call gouging and we in California have lived through the electric companies that did the very same to us a few years back. De-regulation has gone way too far and it is time for regulation to be coming back to avoid this massive digging into what we don't have for big oil profits.

[SaltySaltillo]

If you try to take profits away from "big oil" you run the risk of (a) raising gas prices higher and (b) increasing pressure to drill in off limits areas while reducing incentives to drill in areas that are open to drilling but economically prohibitive to do so... just the opposite of what we want.

[NickNas]

On the BACKS and at the EXPENSE of EVERY Man Woman and Child AND Small and Large Corporation in the ENTIRE COUNTRY!!!

These artificially boosted prices hurt EVERYONE...EXCEPT.........BIG OIL!!


The last BS Money grab before the Oil based Whitehouse is evicted!

[sugarmoes]

yeah... by overcharging the american people.

wow... yer a genius, ain'tcha?

[GeraldineFerraro]

Off the backs of hardworking broke Americans!!

[teron678]

An American Company made money not the American People/Government .. and they did this by exploiting the American People .........

When will the electorate wake up ......... *censored!!*

[JiminNC]

An "American Company Made Money"

By running up the price of a necessary commodity and shoving it up our ... noses.