More Republican Malarky . . .

During the BP hearings today, Texas Republican Congressman Joe Barton criticized the White House’s brokering the $20 billion fund as a “shakedown,” and apologized to Mr. Hayward for what he called the politicization of the crisis. He went on to claim he was "ashamed" of the White House meeting (http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/18/us/politics/18spill.html?hp). I wonder how he can be ashamed of the White House, unashamed of kissing up to our old landlords and of chosing corporate interests over those of the people of the gulf or the 11 that died in the accident. And how is this crisis not "political" exactly? It strikes at one of the key political questions today -- are government going to hold corporations accountable for their behavior, or treat them like victims of efforts to regulate or hurt their bottom line by actually considering the common good or the "small people" BP CEO Hayward mentioned in the now infamous quote: "I hear comments sometimes that large oil companies are greedy companies or don't care. But that is not the case indeed. We care about the small people." (http://www.csmonitor.com/From-the-news-wires/2010/0617/BP-Small-People-comment-and-oil-spill-blasted-on-Capitol-Hill). The obvious question is who these small people are, exactly? The customers that make BP execs rich? Everyone on the planet worth less than $500 million? Those pesky ex-colonists that keep pestering us with their problems? Or does he just mean people under six feet tall? The real question is what is more embarrassing -- the Republican party today aligning with BP execs or the English football team tying the United States. Tough call, really.