Press Releases
REVEALED: Big Oil’s Revolving Door In the MAGA Congress
Washington, D.C. – Nonpartisan watchdog Accountable.US found numerous former oil company lobbyists are being hired to work for the new Republican MAGA Congress, including in top positions on the influential House Natural Resources Committee.
It’s no surprise that Big Oil is infiltrating the halls of Congress after spending millions to elect some of the most extreme legislators in American history. These lobbyists are not getting hired to advocate for American energy consumers – they will push an agenda that benefits the new majority’s donors no matter what it costs taxpayers.”
Jordan Schreiber, Director of Energy and Environment at Accountable.US
Below are some highlights of Accountable.US’s research, which can be reviewed in its entirety at this link.
Rep. Bruce Westerman’s new Chief of Staff Nancy Peele is an oil lobbyist. Peele’s notable clients include:
- In 2015, Peele lobbied Congress on behalf of Taylor Energy Co. LLC, an oil company liable for causing the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, the “longest running oil spill in U.S. history.”
- From 2010 through 2014, Peele represented Hercules Offshore Inc, a gas company that caused a “massive blowout” and two day fire in the Gulf of Mexico.
- From 2012 to 2015, Peele lobbied on behalf of Hornbeck Offshore Services to ensure that they continued to profit off the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
Peele lobbied on behalf of Freeport-McMoRan Energy LLC, an oil and mining company that paid up to $100 million to settle accusations that it polluted and destroyed parts of Louisiana’s coastline.
Majority Leader Steve Scalise’s Chief of Staff Megan Bel Miller came to Scalise’s office straight out of working as an oil and gas lobbyist. Before becoming Scalise’s Chief of Staff in 2017, Bel Miller lobbied Congress on behalf of National Oceans Industry Association (NOIA), a group representing the offshore oil and gas industry. Bel Miller advocated for polluting industry interests on numerous conservation issues, including the Endangered Species Act, National Environmental Policy Act, and offshore leasing. Majority Whip Tom Emmer’s new Policy Director Ian Foley is an energy and mining lobbyist. In 2022, Foley lobbied Congress on behalf of the uranium mining industry and public utilities with oil and gas portfolios.
