Invincible
16th February 2003, 12:56 AM
by David Batstone
Consider it a sign of the times, the news that is deemed
fit to print. In the very last page of the front section of
Saturday's "The New York Times" (2/8/03) was squeezed a
short story on the betrayal of democracy. The General
Accounting Office (GAO) announced that it was abandoning
its efforts to get records of Vice President Dick Cheney's
energy task force. Kenneth Walker, the comptroller general,
suggests that congressional leaders had urged him to
give up the case. Why this story would not lead the news
(instead of tailing it) is beyond my comprehension.
Cheney, if you recall, had held extensive meetings with
executives among the corporate energy titans during his
early days at the White House. Then-Enron chairman
Kenneth Lay was present and active in these discussions
to retool U.S. energy policy. In my new book, "Saving the
Corporate Soul," I provide firsthand evidence that Lay and
other Enron executives clearly were aware (and even
condoned) as early as 1995 the misrepresentation of
Enron's business operations in order to boost the value
of its stock. By the time 2001 had rolled around - and
Cheney was choosing his trusted energy advisers - the
Enron corruption was operating at mammoth proportions.
Once Enron was exposed, the Cheney team ran for cover.
Investigations into the role of Lay and other private
energy chiefs met a wall of silence at the White House.
Fulfilling its dutiful role as an organ of accountability
in a democratic system, the GAO made a formal request
for the records of the Cheney summits. The vice president
of the United States refused to comply. To this day,
we still do not know how much influence the private
energy sector had in shaping the current administration's
national energy policy, and to benefit whose interests.
The fact that the Bush-Cheney administration today
prepares to launch a pre-emptive attack on Iraq, and
the fact that a key objective in that military strategy is
to have a greater control over the world energy market,
makes a public disclosure of the record of the energy
summits all the more important.
My declarations should not be tarnished as a wacko
conspiracy theory. If Vice President Cheney has nothing to
hide, then why doesn't he share these records with the
American people? If he is hiding something, on the other
hand, and is not forced to reveal what it is, then
conspiracy is the least of our worries. It marks a new
era in secret governance.
<font color="blue">Need I say more? <!--color-->[/color]
Consider it a sign of the times, the news that is deemed
fit to print. In the very last page of the front section of
Saturday's "The New York Times" (2/8/03) was squeezed a
short story on the betrayal of democracy. The General
Accounting Office (GAO) announced that it was abandoning
its efforts to get records of Vice President Dick Cheney's
energy task force. Kenneth Walker, the comptroller general,
suggests that congressional leaders had urged him to
give up the case. Why this story would not lead the news
(instead of tailing it) is beyond my comprehension.
Cheney, if you recall, had held extensive meetings with
executives among the corporate energy titans during his
early days at the White House. Then-Enron chairman
Kenneth Lay was present and active in these discussions
to retool U.S. energy policy. In my new book, "Saving the
Corporate Soul," I provide firsthand evidence that Lay and
other Enron executives clearly were aware (and even
condoned) as early as 1995 the misrepresentation of
Enron's business operations in order to boost the value
of its stock. By the time 2001 had rolled around - and
Cheney was choosing his trusted energy advisers - the
Enron corruption was operating at mammoth proportions.
Once Enron was exposed, the Cheney team ran for cover.
Investigations into the role of Lay and other private
energy chiefs met a wall of silence at the White House.
Fulfilling its dutiful role as an organ of accountability
in a democratic system, the GAO made a formal request
for the records of the Cheney summits. The vice president
of the United States refused to comply. To this day,
we still do not know how much influence the private
energy sector had in shaping the current administration's
national energy policy, and to benefit whose interests.
The fact that the Bush-Cheney administration today
prepares to launch a pre-emptive attack on Iraq, and
the fact that a key objective in that military strategy is
to have a greater control over the world energy market,
makes a public disclosure of the record of the energy
summits all the more important.
My declarations should not be tarnished as a wacko
conspiracy theory. If Vice President Cheney has nothing to
hide, then why doesn't he share these records with the
American people? If he is hiding something, on the other
hand, and is not forced to reveal what it is, then
conspiracy is the least of our worries. It marks a new
era in secret governance.
<font color="blue">Need I say more? <!--color-->[/color]