More of the Same Failed Energy Policy from Rudy Giuliani
May 2, 2007
Despite Rudy Giuliani's desperate attempts to distance himself from his ties to Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez yesterday, the truth is the Giuliani that Americans do not yet know is beholden to energy special interests. Not only has Giuliani profited from Chavez controlled Citgo Petroleum Company, but he also has showed incompetence when dealing with air quality standards following 9/11.
In addition, according to the New York Times today, Rudy Giuliani's law firm, Bracewell & Giuliani, is the country's "most aggressive" lobbyist for the oil, gas and energy industries and played a major role in lobbying the Bush Administration to roll back the Clean Air Act. Moreover, former Enron President Richard D. Kinder and other energy producers have donated more than $400,000 to Giuliani's campaign. Also, Giuliani was hired to defend - and declare safe - the Indian Point, NY nuclear reactors which "have long evoked safety concerns." [New York Times, 5/2/07, Wall Street Journal, 3/23/07]
As mayor of New York City, Giuliani displayed incompetence when dealing with the air quality standards after the 9/11 attacks. Investigations by the media and the public interest groups revealed that "New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani re-opened sections of downtown Manhattan weeks after the 9/11 attacks despite knowing the air was toxic," and that he "overruled" the city's Department of Environmental Protection. [UPI, 9/7/06; Giuliani, 9/28/01; New York Post, 9/7/06; Daily News (New York), 9/6/06 (emphasis added)]
"Rudy offers more of the same failed energy policies that we have seen from the Bush White House," said DNC Press Secretary Stacie Paxton. "At the debate tomorrow, he will have to explain whether he will let his friends in big oil write our nation's energy policies or whether he will award some more no-bid contracts just like President Bush. Americans have had enough of a presidency centered on doing what's good for his cronies in big oil rather than addressing the needs of hard-working Americans."
GIULIANI FINANCIALLY BENEFITTED FROM HUGO CHAVEZ
Giuliani's Law Firm Got Six Figure Payments From Chavez's Oil Company. Giuliani's law firm, Bracewell & Giuliani, netted $125,000 to $250,000 lobbying for Citgo, beginning only weeks after Giuliani joined the firm. Citgo is controlled by Hugo Chavez, Venezuela's president and a strident critic of the US. This income was part of the 40-fold increase of the firms lobbying income after Giuliani joined, jumping from $150,000 in 2004 to more than $6 million in 2005. [Bloomberg, 3/14/07, Boston Globe, 3/15/07; AP, 1/10/07]
Ironically, Giuliani Insisted That the U.S. Must Not Depend Enemies For Oil. Giuliani said that The goal.over the next 10 to 15 years is to reduce, and then eliminate, our reliance on oil from sources that are enemies of the United States. [The Caucus, NYT.com, 3/14/07]
DESPITE DATA SHOWING DANGERS, GIULIANI EXPOSED WORKERS AND PUBLIC
Giuliani Said Air Was Safe After Tests Showed Otherwise, Overruled Health Experts. In late September 2001, Giuliani flatly denied that air quality at Ground Zero was an issue, saying at a press conference: The air quality is safe and acceptable. And I know there are people that are concerned about it and people that are worried about it, but that's just the reality. Investigations by the media and the public interest groups revealed documents showing that New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani re-opened sections of downtown Manhattan weeks after the 9/11 attacks despite knowing the air was toxic, and that he overruled the city's Department of Environmental Protection. 27 of 38 tests before the statement showed high levels of asbestos. [UPI, 9/7/06; Giuliani, 9/28/01; New York Post, 9/7/06; Daily News (New York), 9/6/06 (emphasis added)]
Giuliani's Administration Hid Findings of Contamination. Government documents uncovered by this column since 9/11 showed city and federal officials hid important information about the true extent of contamination. The city's Department of Environmental Protection, for example, found high levels of asbestos in 27 of the first 38 air samples it took in lower Manhattan before Sept. 17, 2001. But the city didn't publicly disclose those results until five months later. [Daily News (New York), 9/6/06]
GIULIANI WORKED FOR NUCLEAR ENERGY, DEFENDED PROBLEMATIC SAFETY RECORD
Giuliani Minimized Risks of Nuclear Power After Being Hired By Nuke Plant. Giuliani said the industry needed to do a better job of promoting an optimistic view of nuclear plants. You have to show how you are helping solve peoples problems, he said. The rewards are many. The risks are relatively small, and they can be reduced by good planning. That is the way people should assess nuclear power. Newsday reported, Giuliani, private consultant to energy corporations, [urged] governors and state lawmakers to ease permits for nuclear plants. [Newsday (New York), 6/19/06; Times Picayune (New Orleans), 11/18/03]
Giuliani Pronounced Indian Point As Safe and An Excellent Model Despite Long Standing Safety Concerns. A potential political vulnerability may be the consulting agreement that ties Giuliani Partners to a pair of nuclear reactors known as Indian Point. The reactors, located 35 miles north of midtown Manhattan and owned by a subsidiary of Entergy Corp. of New Orleans, have long evoked safety concerns, which surged after the 9/11 attacks, when the reactors were seen as potential terrorism targets..Entergy hired Giuliani Partners to conduct a security assessment. According to the Wall Street Journal, Shortly after signing a contract in 2003, Mr. Giuliani's company oversaw a mock terrorist drill at the site and pronounced it safe -- an assertion Mr. Giuliani repeated to reporters in November, when Entergy applied for a 20-year extension of its permit to operate. Our view is that Indian Point is as safe as a facility can be, and a pretty good model, if not an excellent model for not only other nuclear power plants but other industries, Mr. Giuliani said.Mr. Giuliani's firm remains a consultant at Indian Point. [Wall Street Journal, 3/23/07]
