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

[SWEETPB307]

CONT...The most recently filed form shows that he was lobbying for the company as late as mid-July. Green took a leave of absence from Ogilvy to join the campaign, but was still on the Hess account up through the first quarter of 2008, the forms show.

"That John McCain's campaign also has Hess lobbyists as two of its top advisers raises additional questions about how McCain and the RNC came to raise $300,000 from Hess employees, including the controversial contribution reported earlier this week," said David Donnelly of Campaign Money Watch.

"Hess oil would stand to make a killing from offshore drilling," Donnelly continued. "Berman and Green were their lobbyists. Did they play any role in lining up these contributions?"

In mid-2005, disclosure forms show, Ogilvy (at the time known as the Federalist Group) began lobbying for Hess on energy issues, a relationship that the forms show has continued to the present. Berman and Green, though they aren't the only two at Ogilvy who worked for Hess, lobbied for the company throughout, the forms say.

None of the parties involved returned our calls.


http://tpmelectioncentral.talkingpointsmemo.com/2008/08/mccain_advisers_have_also_doub.php

[Justsaynodeal]

Axelrod was a lobbyist for Excelon nuclear power company, a company who donated big bucks to 0-man, who rewrote an energy bill in the Illinois legislature to benefit Excelon.

[steamboat]

Thats Exelon, not Excelon...­..But you are absolutely correct. Obama and Frank Clark, Pres. of Exelon are big buddies...­I believe this is where Axelrod and Obama became pals. As state senator Obama always voted for anything the nuclear plants at Byron, Braidwood, LaSalle, and Quad-Cities needed and wanted.

[Dreamers101]

Huffpo you are doing your readership a disse’rvice publishing garb’age like this!!!! The headline is misle’ading and you even have a subtitle of “Open Sec’retes”.

SCURR’ILOUS HUFFPO SHA’ME ON YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[MikeGuy]

It's important to recognize - as many here have - the difference between lumping all into "the oil industry." The huge profits earned by the oil industry have not "risen all boats" - they've gone straight into shareholders pockets, and those of the high execs as bonuses. The employees have NOT benefited. In fact, a key irony of high oil prices: many gas stations are going under!

Big Oil and their employees are entirely different constituencies, and it's dishonest (dear OpenSecrets) to say otherwise.

[Justsaynodeal]

Unless they were bundled donations from the oil companies employees? OpenSecrets is pretty careful about what they print.

[steamboat]

What Obama wanted to do wasn't legal...Ju­st TAKING money from a corporatio­n....By taxes yes, by bullying no.


BTW, just nosey, all you school teachers out there, how much of your Teacher's Pension Fund is tied into stocks? YOU'D better find out? Exxon-Mobil is a popular one. How do I know this? My sister is a public school teacher and she investigated.

[lizr]

HOW can you compare the money that comes from EMPLOYEES with the money coming from the top?

Just BS>

[MossyOak]

"Oil Industry Likes Obama...."

Heh, Huffpo.... there's this thing called Yellow Journalism. You might have heard about this in college...­?

[SFwoman]

Come on, delete that BS headline. A candidate (Obama) finally goes out of his way to take ONLY small donations from regular folks (not lobbiests and special interests) but you still paint his donations iin a false light by publishing this?

Fact: Obama can only take donations of up to $4600 from any individual----these people happen to work for companies and have to say what company they work for when the donate.
Fact: Obama does not take donations from any company or industry
Fact: These donations are too small for Obama to owe anyone a big favor.

Fact: Mccain does take large donations from industries (represented by lobbys and PACs, etc)---therefore he owes big favors to these industries and interests, that's how politics as worked for years and that's why it''s broken

Look closer and help people see this, please

[lisaintexas]

Perhaps one of the good things these oil companies have done is hired smart people? Employees aren't the 'oil company.' Check the executives giving and bundling and see how that stacks up. Employees I don't believe have to report to their employers who they donate to and nor do they have to agree with all the policies of their employer. Would be nice if everyone worked with companies they admire without exception, but making a living doesn't always allow people to be quite so choosy. I also think we need to be clear that companies should make a profit. It's just hard to live with if they make truly obscene profits while maintaining they just can't do anything about keeping the price of their goods from escalating.

Oil companies aren't 'evil' - they're just spoiled rotten! What Exxon ultimately may end up paying for the Valdez spill is truly immoral. People lost their way of life and ability to make a living. And Exxon knew the tanker campaign had alcohol problems. He was a drunk driver. We punish them more heavily on land I think.

They don't need tax breaks that's for sure.

And many oil companies are doing a great deal to try and find alternative sources of energy, etc. I try and believe all that 'green' stuff although I sometimes feel like I feel when I watch a Philip Morris commercial explaining how much they're doing to stop people smoking!

[bosshogg]

i wouldn't be surprise if fox news employees donate more to obama than mccain....­.. this has to be the most grasping for straws ever......­..........­..........­..........­........

[tellinya]

This is such BS. Why do you guys at Huffpo give this traction and not call this out as fa´se and misleading?

[wm1066]

maybe so it can be shot down.

[sanywhere]

change the bleeping misleading headline! if you look at the actual facts, it is only the employees that have given more to o and the big money from the companies themselves are overwhelmingly in mccrazies favor. heaven forbid that working people donate to their candidate of choice.

[kellygrrrl]

and no mention of the Big Oil laundered money being funneled to MkKain?

[sanywhere]

exactly, you go kellygrrl!

[obamanation31]

Stupid reporting.

[MissT]

Could it be that the employees at ExxonMobile think it is obscene for the corporation to be making 12 billion dollars in this past quarter while the economy flounders, unemployment is up and unemployed workers can barely get to a job interview because they can't afford $4.00/gal gas?

Maybe they think it would be more patriotic for Exxon/Mobile to make more of a contribution to the folks on Main Street as a show of appreciation for the profits we keep allowing them to make by paying at the pump.

Maybe the employees understand that what is good for Wall Street is not always good for Main Street. And after 7+ years of two oil men in the WH they are supporting the candidate who represents change.

[BillForObama]

I donated to Obama as an employee (not of an oil company) until I lost my job. Now, I give as Unemployed.

[obamanation31]

Employees are not the Company. They are individuals.