Anatomy of a Fundraising Gusher, or McCain's Sellout to Big Oil

On June 16th, a day before Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) scheduled to begin a series of big donors fundraising events in Texas, the presidential candidate announced a reversal in his longstanding opposition to coastal drilling for oil.

The reversal was been met with derision by economists, energy CEOs, and environmentalists.

But, on June 17th in Houston, "[an] audience of about 400 people at a ballroom downtown in the nation's energy capital gave him two standing ovations as he called for fewer federal regulations on oil exploration," according to the Houston Chronicle.

At the time, I called McCain's reversal on off-shore drilling "a blatant pitch for donations at today's Houston fundraising events." With fresh data to analyze, I was wrong about only one thing: that pitch wasn't limited to Houston.

Here's the Washington Post's lede in today's paper:

"Campaign contributions from oil industry executives to Sen. John McCain rose dramatically in the last half of June, after the senator from Arizona made a high-profile split with environmentalists and reversed his opposition to the federal ban on offshore drilling."

In the month of June, McCain's political committees and the Republican National Committee's joint fundraising account raised nearly $7 million from Texas donors. Twenty percent of it -- a more than $1.3 million -- came on the day of McCain's announcement, June 16, or the day immediately following it.

So who gave the money? A quick cursory look found gold -- or struck oil. Over the month of June, Texas oil and gas industry bigwigs wrote big checks to the McCain-RNC joint victory account -- a fundraising scheme employed by both McCain and Obama to evade the $2,300 contribution limits on individual donations. The joint victory fund received:

• $107,100 from Gerald J. and Kelli Ford -- Gerald is on the Board of Directors of McMoRan Exploration
• $100,000 from Jonathan and Marion Fairbanks of Bassoe Offshore
• $60,100 from Charles and Rolanette Lawrence -- Charles heads Kirby Corporation
• $28,500 from Donald and Lynne Wood -- Donald works for Permian Enterprises
• $28,500 from Autry Stephens of Endeavor Energy
• $15,000 from Clarence Cazolot, the president of Marathon Oil
• $15,000 from Barry Beal of BTA Oil Producers
• $10,000 from Tracy Krohn of W.T. & T. Offshore

And the list goes on. This is just the tip of the melting iceberg.

McCain's policy reversal reveals much about what he's apparently willing to do for the right amount of money.

The drilling plan won't produce lower gas prices for years, if at all. All it does is line the pockets of the oil industry executives - ones that found themselves a new champion in June.

From the Post's piece:

"Charting the political donations of oil executives may be the best way to evaluate the industry's level of interest in a presidential candidate, said Robin West, chairman of PFC Energy, an industry adviser. [...]

And West said he thinks McCain gave energy executives what they needed to get more solidly in his corner -- a pledge to reverse a federal policy that has frustrated the industry for years.

"'I think people thought it was a sensible thing that was long due,' West said. 'I think the industry was very appreciative.'" (emphasis added)

Indeed.

Comments

[wayofthefuture]

If I owned an oil company I would give him three times his biggest offer.

[whatsthatsound]

Buy the new boss, the same as the old boss

[chosenson]

I'm confused. Being a member of the ignorant, uneducated public, I can't get my head around certain things. For instance . . .

If McCain says he's getting rid of "Pork Barrel" spending, how does taking special interest money help him to accomplish this? He is against the Washington "special interests", right? And oil money is "special interest" money, right?

I think the man just called me an idiot. I'd be a fool to vote for such a blatantly dishonest man who thinks the average voter is too stupid to keep track of all his antics.

[mh01]

So by this argument we should believe that Obama is in the bag for media and wall street, both of which gave massively in favor of obama.

Its not just big corporations, its Lobbyists, media, unions, PAC's, AND corporations, all giving loot to the person they think will best support their agenda.

Almost makes the case for public financing, to release the stranglehold these special interests have on politicians. Re-align the interests of politicians, get rid of even the appearance of political obligation to large donors.

Whomever you support, it shouldn't be about who is giving you money, it shouldn't be about who has more money, it shouldn't be about money at all.

[PuppaX]

They're all in the bag for someone, but very rarely do you see such a clearly defined quid-pro-quo.

[IowaKid]

I see that the msm won't cover stories like this. You never hear anything about this on tv.

[klosskid]

Does anyone else remember the good old days when this was simply called bribery?

[Daly]

Exactly

[3rdEye]

Ugh. It seems like the closer politicians get to power, the more they're "owned' by large corporations and/or industries. Good luck to whomever takes over the crises they wil linherit. Business has a long history of being resistant to change, regardless of responsibility to their people and their country. I certainly don't see McCain as the maverick he touts himself to be. He's a Republican operating under Republican law - did you actually expect different?

[demfriend]

McCain Has taken money from all the lobbyists that will hand it to him. He is for sale and they all know it as we can tell the oil guys have landed and the money flowing from them to offshore drill must be huge. That the country as it is now with the MSM selling Mac like he has something sane about him and that very few people with anyone who watches their shows paying attention to reality there is a lot to be concerned about. If people took off the glasses they wear that have turned from rosey to crap brown they would see Mac for who he really is and that he is getting by with such dangerous lies maybe we would have a real chance at changing the country. If people continue to buy what Mac is selling I have no faith in our future and we will lose more than what we have with Bush.

[chosenson]

Phil Gramm is the reason why my mortgage woes will never be addressed by John McCain.

Phil Gramm is the reason why this oil crisis will never be addressed by John McCain

Phil Gramm is the reason why voting for John McCain is a bad idea for working class Americans.

Taking oil money and pretending that he supports offshore drilling because it will "ease my pain at the pump" is one of the many reasons why voting for McCain will never again enter my mind.

[PumaAnn]

It does seem that energy belongs to McCain, so I can see why the money is going his direction.

[whitewaterwillie]

I would say that McCain belongs to energy.

[BubbaC33]

John McCain is a bad person for taking money from Big Oil, as though no Democrta has taken money from them. This is a senseless game to play. And what purpose does it serve to attack McCain for his ties to Big Oil if the blame isn;t spread evenly and fairly?
Here is what I believe Obama should be working to get across to the media. Attack the COngress for its failure to bring about the radical change necessary if we are to break our dependency on foreign oil and foreign countries. Think about it. If the US would grow enough sugar beets, switch grasses, and utilize the by-product from the lumber and paper indistries more than enough ethanol would be produced to stop our oil dependency. All and it akes is for Congress to take the steps to make this happen. And Obama should be pointing out how many jobs will be created by this new industry. This would be a win for Obama and for the US.
Big Oil may own McCain, but it also controls Congress. So, rather than attacking McCain I believe Obama should actually be specific about the change this new direction will take the US. Add in a distribution system and we're done with Big Oil.

[egal]

Uh, the point is the AMOUNT, the timing, and the way these two things affirm a new influence level in McCain's campaign that is contrary to everything he claimed to stand for and, in particular, to his ad claims and his image as a maverick who does what he thinks best instead of following the money.

The Congress alone only has so much power--and, let's face it, a lot of them are either too partisan and corrupt or too complacent with their easy, taxpayer-funded lives of excess.

So it would be foolish to suggest letting McCain "take a pass" for his oil funding when it is necessary that someone with far more power than Obama currently holds (and perhaps a significant party majority that is pressured by its constituents) get the Democrats moving for more accountability and innovation and less waste and fraud.

Lord knows the Republicans would never pass something that redues their comfortable lifestyles of waste and abse of our funds, but it's not something ANYone in power, regardless of party, is going to accomplish without being pushed, and certainly McCain won't do the pshing.

[clevelandchick]

Very good post, couldn't agree more egal.

[BubbaC33]

My point is Big Oil has much more influence on the Congress than it seems some are willing to admit. Congress may have power that is very limited, your point, but I believe any limitations have been accepted by Reid and Pelosi. And the best way to test limits is to push against them, something the Democratic leadership has failed to do. If we want to limit Big Oil it requires us to push our reps to do more, to work more for the environment, and to stop kissing W-Bush's tush.

[WaspStings]

And all time I thought it was the environmentalists that owned the Democrats.

[knighthowl]

No, just the people who care to preserve the planet.

[BubbaC33]

Would that the ewnvironmentalists owned the Democratic Party, but it just ins't so. Ask yourself, what has the Democratically controlled Congress done since 2006 to limit the power and avarice of Big Oil? The answer is not a thing. All Reid and Pelosi have done is to kowtow to W-Bush and the GOP agenda. And we deserve better. And we ought to demand better.
I read yesterday, not on HuffPo, that Obama has said he might select a VP candidate who is a Republican. I cannot understand the thinking that would lead to such an act. The GOP has fought the Democratic agenda in ways that are beyond unethical. The time has come to put the nation first, which I believe requires pushing the GOP as far down as is possible.