Oil Industry Likes Obama -- But They Love McCain

Open Secrets:

Much has been made of Barack Obama's TV ad this week that accuses John McCain of being "in the pocket" of the oil industry, and yesterday the Democratic Party launched a website pairing McCain and Exxon Mobil as running-mates. While McCain has raised considerably more money from this unpopular industry, CRP was surprised to notice that it's actually Obama who has received more from the pockets of employees at several of Big Oil's biggest and most recognizable companies. Tallying contributions by employees in the industry and their families, we found that Exxon, Chevron and BP have all contributed more money to Obama than to McCain.

Through June, Exxon employees have given Obama $42,100 to McCain's $35,166. Chevron favors Obama $35,157 to $28,500, and Obama edges out McCain with BP $16,046 vs. $11,500. McCain leads the money race with nearly every other top giver in the oil and gas industry, though -- Koch Industries, Valero, Marathon Oil, Occidental Petroleum, ConocoPhillips, the list goes on. (You can see detail on all these companies in the spreadsheet linked below.) McCain also has a big edge with Hess Corp. -- $91,000 to Obama's $8,000 -- which has gotten some attention. And, overall, McCain's campaign has gotten three times more money from the industry than Obama's has -- $1.3 million compared to about $394,000.

Read the whole story: Open Secrets

Comments

[Bluejay00234]

Gotta love huffpo and these headlines.

[liseworks]

Ya, right .... : )

Nope.
Gotta get Huffpo to read these posts & change the headline ASAP so that it : tells the truth.

[adl]

Individuals who work for a corporation can donate to whomever they wish. This is not the corporation making the donation.

[chs1965]

Why is this news? Who is "Open Secret"? Employee contributions, unless they are the top mangement of a company and who they work for are irrelevant.
How stupid do these editorialists, if you can dignify them by that title think we are?

[Softnsweet]

Most of the people in my company has donated to the Obama campaign and we are healthcare. We know that he is making changes but would rather have Obama then McCain. The company itself favors McCain.

[Daly]

Fix the headline; Exxon worker bees gave more to Obama however the company management and coporation is in the tank for McBush.

[sherbug]

This is ridiculous. Obama's contributions came from employees of Exxon, not the corporation itself. I work for a large auto insurance company and more people that work there have given to Obama. What does that mean? Nothing. The same as it means for Exxon.

This is just more negative news on Obama while trying to downplay McCain being literally in bed with big oil and big Bush and big Saudi, and big Cheney. The haters will pump this into the homes of the gullible voters and they will buy it.

I am so tired of every election being decided by the most uninformed and uneducated.

[Bluejay00234]

Agreed.

[RadhaColalurver]

Everyone is trying to flush out the little bit of negative information before Obama's vacation to Hawaii. During it, just wait. Their only punching bag will be McCain.

[chronic]

Amen!

[Agnim]

How are employees donations relevant as 'oil money', unless companies are giving employees money to donate?

Aren't these donors like the rest of regular Americans who have been sending checks to the Obama campaign?

To say that the donations of ordinary Americans is the contribution of Big Oil is childish and misleading.

[gotalife]

Told ya he will cave when he got his check.

This is the biggest fraud since w.

[Justsaynodeal]

I refer to it as the biggest con job in political history. A Internet campaign financed by the little people............LOL

[Bluejay00234]

Yes hes caving to the lab rats. lol

[McChimp]

so how many McPoints are you trolls racking up?

[gotalife]

Change?

Come on.

How gullible can they be?

[haleywins]

So what? McBush is big oil's friend just like 43, not Obama.

[yeswecancan]

I am a former ExxonMobil employee -- I can tell you that the COMPANY urged employees to support Republicans in ways subtle, and not so subtle. Anyone supporting Barack Obama is doing so at their peril and against their own economic interests. This came up in the primary season, and I continue to post to tell people these are totally misleading statistics and in no way indicate that Sen. Obama is seen as being in the pocket of the oil industry.

[BabsfromKansas]

Please post this on the MSM blogs as well!

[Bluejay00234]

Thank you.

[Justsaynodeal]

This from a former employee gives it credibility? He obviously in an 0bamination now.

[gotalife]

I think we can all agree that this is not change but business as usual.

[SeekerOne]

Please don't project your tortured and programmed "thinking" onto the rest of us.

[jsinclair]

How about looking at the amounts of donations?

I think you'll find that McCain's money is mostly from CEOs and corporate bundlers.

Obama's is from us "little people" who work for companies like this but really wish they wouldn't be gouging the public--and who hope for alternative fuel and conservation measures before its too late.

Saying "big oil supports Obama" is blatantly misleading.

If you don't think so, then provide the total NUMBER of donors to each campaign--not just the "grand totals" of money given.

[Justsaynodeal]

It always amazes me how any thing 0-man can be justified by the 0baminations.

[magggs]

Especially when it's true. Amazing how truth can justify and explain things. You ought to try it some time.

[TotobiAyokoh23]

The operational reminder here is the defeatism of a quid pro quo. There are no quid pro quo conditionalities associated with contributions made to Obama. Period.

[genia]

LOL...WOW.....who put this peice together? I'll bet whoever you are...you are a Clinton supporter.

17 day to go......and counting.

[Diogenis]

Bravo genia, na haris to moustaki sou.

[blueshield]

Hmm...I hear the janitorial staff in the Capitol Building gave more money to Senator O - so by the logic of this post it looks like he leads in campaign contributions from Congress compared to the moronaverick.

I though HuffPo had editors.

Waiter, there's a red herring in my apple pie.

[wanj]

This is a good article about McBush -
http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2008/08/his_drilling_plan_full_of_hole.html

[JiminNC]

Pretty good indication that people do not feel McWrinkledScrotus is likey to help anyone making less than 1 million a year ... and they are correct. McBushClone is exatly that. He has no policies except he is against everything Obama presents. He has nothing to offer, an empty suit, propped by desperate RoveOps goons.

[liseworks]

McWrinkled Scrotus - too funny !!!!!!