Joe Barton, GOP in Hot Seat as Democrats Attack Apology to BP
Patricia Murphy
Capitol Hill Bureau Chief
Posted:
06/17/10
Democrats pounced on Republicans as being too cozy with Big Oil Thursday after GOP Rep. Joe Barton apologized to BP CEO Tony Hayward for the White House's demand for a $20 billion escrow fund for damages caused by the Gulf spill.
"I'm ashamed of what happened in the White House yesterday," Barton said to Hayward as the hearing began. "I think it is a tragedy of the first proportion that a private company would be subjected to what I would characterize as a shakedown, in this case a $20 billion shakedown."
Although the Texas lawmaker immediately added that he had no doubt that BP is responsible for all of the damages, it was too late to undo the damage he had caused himself and his party.
Moments after Barton's statement, White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said that members of both parties should "repudiate" his comments. "Congressman Barton may think that a fund to compensate these Americans is a 'tragedy,' but most Americans know that the real tragedy is what the men and women of the Gulf Coast are going through right now," Gibbs said.
Unfortunately for the congressman, the Democrats were just getting started.
Vice President Joe Biden called Barton's remarks "disgraceful," the Democratic National Committee sent urgent alerts to members of the media who may have missed Barton's statement, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi used her weekly press conference to highlight it.
"While people in the Gulf are suffering as a result of the actions of BP, Republican are apologizing to BP," Pelosi said.
She later laughed out loud when asked by a reporter if Barton's apology was a turning point for the Republican Party's support for big business. "A turning point?" she laughed. "They've always been with big business."
By late afternoon, even Barton's own Republican colleagues threw him overboard, as Reps. John Boehner, Eric Cantor and Mike Pence took the rare step of releasing a joint Republican leadership statement to condemn Barton's apology to BP.
"Congressman Barton's statements this morning were wrong," the leaders said, before calling the White House response to the Gulf disaster "unacceptable."
After the all-day assault, Barton stepped forward and issued a partial apology for his apology, saying his comments at the hearing were misconstrued, and, "I apologize for that misconstruction."
"I'm ashamed of what happened in the White House yesterday," Barton said to Hayward as the hearing began. "I think it is a tragedy of the first proportion that a private company would be subjected to what I would characterize as a shakedown, in this case a $20 billion shakedown."
Although the Texas lawmaker immediately added that he had no doubt that BP is responsible for all of the damages, it was too late to undo the damage he had caused himself and his party.
Moments after Barton's statement, White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said that members of both parties should "repudiate" his comments. "Congressman Barton may think that a fund to compensate these Americans is a 'tragedy,' but most Americans know that the real tragedy is what the men and women of the Gulf Coast are going through right now," Gibbs said.Unfortunately for the congressman, the Democrats were just getting started.
Vice President Joe Biden called Barton's remarks "disgraceful," the Democratic National Committee sent urgent alerts to members of the media who may have missed Barton's statement, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi used her weekly press conference to highlight it.
"While people in the Gulf are suffering as a result of the actions of BP, Republican are apologizing to BP," Pelosi said.
She later laughed out loud when asked by a reporter if Barton's apology was a turning point for the Republican Party's support for big business. "A turning point?" she laughed. "They've always been with big business."
By late afternoon, even Barton's own Republican colleagues threw him overboard, as Reps. John Boehner, Eric Cantor and Mike Pence took the rare step of releasing a joint Republican leadership statement to condemn Barton's apology to BP.
"Congressman Barton's statements this morning were wrong," the leaders said, before calling the White House response to the Gulf disaster "unacceptable."
After the all-day assault, Barton stepped forward and issued a partial apology for his apology, saying his comments at the hearing were misconstrued, and, "I apologize for that misconstruction."