BP Oil Spill Hearing LIVE: Video, Photos, Updates

The BP oil spill hearing is underway and you can follow along live below, as Congressmen question BP CEO Tony Hayward.

In his opening statement, Hayward said he was "deeply sorry" for the company's catastrophic oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. He also said BP is committed to doing the "right thing" in response.

The BP hearing comes two days after President Barack Obama's primetime address about the oil spill.

See photos of the BP oil spill hearing below and scroll down to watch the hearing live and follow the latest tweets in real-time. Keep up with the latest news on our Oil Spill Big News page.

Know of a great Twitter user to add to one of these lists? Let us know at [e-mail]!

Gulf Oil Spill

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BP CEO Tony Hayward is sworn in on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, June 17, 2010, prior to before testifying before the Energy and Environment subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations hearing on the role of BP in the Deepwater Horizon Explosion and Oil Spill. (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari)

Gulf Oil Spill

BP CEO Tony Hayward is sworn in on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, June 17, 2010, prior to before testifying before the Energy and Environment subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations hearing on the role of BP in the Deepwater Horizon Explosion and Oil Spill. (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari)

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Comments

[Rambutt]

02:57 PM on 06/18/2010

Sorry to say, but BP CEO Tony Hayward made those Congressman look like
the bunch of inarticulate hicks that they are.

Rather than pointing fingers they should look in the mirror. No wonder England kicked them out.
They were able to make a most despicable guy like Tony Hayward seem like a gentleman.

[davek1]

05:50 PM on 06/18/2010

Rambutt??? How did you get that na---.. Never mind... Duh...

[speakingtruth2power]

10:45 AM on 06/18/2010

Fining managers for criminal negligence will not stop the is bushit!

Suing them for money when there is negligent homicide involved

only adds to the notion of two Americas. The little people of this

world want real justice here and some hard time for these a-holes.

[christin]

06:51 AM on 06/18/2010

Oil Spill Update with useful links:
http://updatebp.wordpress.com/

[awlff]

03:17 AM on 06/18/2010

http://www.seizebp.org/
I just went to this website.I signed the petition and sent letters to my state's congressman and senators.20 billion escrow fund indeed.Very slick of BP and the administration to appear to have done the right thing. BP and the administration (Obama) have rigged the pay outs to never really be enough to help people soon enough. Seizing BP's and Haliburton assets is the answer.Our government does it every hour of every day to tax evaders and drug dealers.There are thousands of drug dealers in prison.And murderers.BP deserves the same punishment.

[lboucher]

02:36 AM on 06/18/2010

http://www.wkrg.com/gulf_oil_spill/article/environmental-engineer-dispersants-have-to-stop-now/897155/Jun-17-2010_6-43-pm/

BP’s use of Corexit dispersant will kill the Gulf with sulfuric acid: Environmental engineer

Joe Taylor, an environmental engineer in Daphne, says BP’s use of the dispersant Corexit is wrong, and they will kill the Gulf of Mexico. And Taylor has the scientific knowledge to back up his claim. He’s been cleaning up petroleum contamination for many years.

He says the sulfur and sulfuric acid based dispersant makes the oil spewing into the gulf sink, where its impossible to clean up–and where it depletes oxygen levels under the water, killing plankton and everything above plankton in the food chain. “Corexit is toxic, petroleum is toxic, and its depleting the oxygen levels,” he says.

[Carolab]

02:19 AM on 06/18/2010

Show time for the "small people".

This $20B fund is a boon for BP. They are getting off lightly.

What does the BP "escrow" deal really mean?

People all around the country have put so much pressure on the Obama administration that it had to “do something” to look like it was standing up to BP. The announcement today of a so-called $20 billion escrow fund from BP would never have happened without mass pressure. But does this fund truly respond to the needs of the people in the Gulf Coast states?

Too much is at stake for people to let down their guard and accept the “feel good” sound-bite version of what took place today in the meeting between President Obama and BP’s executives.

The White House and BP are creating a mythology, or "spin," on what the tentative agreement signifies. Click here to read the full statement.

http://www.seizebp.org/

I remember when they "be-at up on Goldman", too. And then we got zip for "reform".

[awlff]

01:28 AM on 06/18/2010

Among other things.Tell your representatives no more oil! No more bribes.No more federal judges that sit on cases where they receive compensation from the defendants.Tell your representatives to legalize industrial hemp.Industrial hemp can be cash crop that will enable the U.S. to be self sufficient.Fuel,textiles,thousands of products.Google industrial hemp.You will be surprised.

[rollingrock]

01:11 AM on 06/18/2010

Another dog and pony show? The Congress acts like they are upset with BP but every last one of them is in bed with the oil industry and accepted their campaign bribes. I nominate the Congress for Best Actor award! I predict they sweep the Oscars.

[worker beenumbed]

09:20 PM on 06/17/2010

The rig bosses allowed a cheap well casing and did not use enough cement around the casing as mentioned in the testimony.The rig bosses should go before the committee.MMS needs a few rig inspectors who visit each deep water rig Not Lawyers.Not covered in the testimony.

[davek1]

09:35 PM on 06/17/2010

Where U get UR "facts"??
U been down there??

[Sustainability D]

09:54 PM on 06/17/2010

Now that the banks paid back the TARP, our pay czar hasn't had much to do. Let's put him back to work to slam these reckless engineers. All BP engineers should get their pay slashed, no bonuses for years to come, no pay increases, cut their benefits. Whatever they did to the bankers I want tenfold done to the engineersters.

[Winston120]

08:34 PM on 06/17/2010

Federal regulation is useless because at the end of the day FEDS are technically incompetent. it will not work for a lead engineer on a rig to call Wash DC on all important decisions every day?
The person in DC knows nothing.

I worked for Big Oil. The only thing that gets their attention is money. This event needs to impact BP for the next 20 years. But this only emboldens Exxon and Shell. They are arrogant as believe this can't happen to them. It is the culture at the top management in this industry to put profit over safety.

[tbone99]

09:17 PM on 06/17/2010

yes but BP has an especially flagrantly unsafe operation. Ninety seven percent of OSHA"s safety penalties in the oil industry have been to BP

[TheAlchemist]

08:07 PM on 06/17/2010

DeepDooDoo

Wanna know how bad it is, really?

Check here:
http://www.ifitwasmyhome.com

Careful...it knows where you live...

[EnglishHorn73]

07:56 PM on 06/17/2010

I have to say, I don't find this tarring and feathering of BP CEO very productive. Same applies to threats about seizing BP assets and bankrupting it. Don't get me wrong - I want BP to pay for all the mess that they have done. But in order for it to be able to pay, BP needs to continue to function as a company, and continue to make money. One-time lump payment, regardless of how big it could be, will not be enough.

So, let's be business-like about them; they screwed up, they need to clean up, and they need to pay. Calling for hara-kiri on the Senate floor is dramatic, but hardly productive. Let BP continue to earn money so it can pay us back everything that it owes.

[davek1]

08:57 PM on 06/17/2010

Ever see an ol'west movie...
People love a good vigilante hanging
it makes our people feel like our reps. are worth something...NOT.

[awlff]

01:21 AM on 06/18/2010

If a criminally negligent company responsible for the death of at least 11people.A company responsible for the destruction of jobs, wildlife,habitat.If a company does all that and bribe all three branches of the United States government and it is no longer a profit making company it deserves to die.Putting it on life support to bleed it will only make other oil companies think up ways around the consequences when they screw up.Survival of the fittest applies to oil companies too.

[had-enough]

07:06 PM on 06/17/2010

Toxic Tony now the King of Stonewalling proves he has Barton right in his pocket. Not bothered by the committee one bit! SLIMEY LIMEY!

[IsisCat]

06:26 PM on 06/17/2010

The irony of a single protestor being arrested while an environmental criminal sits untouched in a senate hearing is not lost.

[toltec998]

06:56 PM on 06/17/2010

Yes. This whole world seems to be upside down.

[esquilax]

07:12 PM on 06/17/2010

...and inside-out.

[Exhaust]

05:46 PM on 06/17/2010

The biggest waste of time...ever. What is the point in 10 people in congress asking the same question 10 times?.?.? And...getting mad when you get the same answer?.?.?

[sviolette]

06:28 PM on 06/17/2010

It's all more evidence for the upcoming trial.

[SuperKK]

06:30 PM on 06/17/2010

The purpose of this hearing is not to get answers or solve any problems. The purpose is to allow the politicians to posture for the cameras, appear to be tough, and gain points for re-election. Look at the British inquiry into the causes of the Iraq war. No shouting, no interruptions, and a good exchange on what actually happened.

It was the MMS lack of regulation that allowed this accident to happen. Additionally, Congress did nothing in their oversight role; until a catastrophe happens, they take no action. They have a complete lack of strategic planning and thinking. Yes, BP cut corners and made stupid engineering decisions. They will pay substantial sums of money for the cleanup, and that precedent may be the major factor that will prevent irresponsible cost-cutting decisions in the future.

If we really want to prevent such tragedies in the future, we will provide harsh jail terms to the appropriate BP officials, to the MMS officials who deliberately didn't do their job, and to the Congress people who failed in their oversight role. The political theater that we saw today is a real turn-off!

[awlff]

02:37 AM on 06/18/2010

I agree.The corruption of all 3 branches of government is represented in this disaster and aftermath.Appointing a federal judge or judges who have not benefited from any oil company or rigging company or construction company will be one step to justice.But people will have to contact the congress and senate and ride them.Public servants from the MMS,EPA,and Department of Interior should face same penalties as the three stooges of off shore drilling.Manslaughter,unsafe drilling procedures,fraud,economic and environmental terrorism, charges would make sense to me.