February, 17 2014, 01:33pm EDT
For Immediate Release
Contact:
Eddie Scher, Sierra Club, 415-815-7027
Brian Rothenberg, ProgressOhio, 614-207-3237
Kasich Administration Caught Up in Fracking Conspiracy Cover-up
In an attempt to bury a story about a planned administration spanning conspiracy to promote fracking in public parks, a secret communications plan was leaked by Ohio Gov. John Kasich's administration to reporters late Friday afternoon.
COLUMBUS, Ohio
In an attempt to bury a story about a planned administration spanning conspiracy to promote fracking in public parks, a secret communications plan was leaked by Ohio Gov. John Kasich's administration to reporters late Friday afternoon.
The 2012 document [PDF] contains a Nixon-style enemies list. It includes detailed plans for various agencies spanning Kasich's administration to "marginalize" opponents by teaming up with "allied" corporations, including Halliburton, business groups and media outlets.
Now more records have been released and they show Kasich may very well be caught up in a cover-up.
The Columbus Dispatchwas told by Kasich's spokesman that "the governor's office had never seen the plan." However, an additional document released today casts very serious doubts about this claim.
Wayne Struble, Kasich's Director of Policy, sent out an invitation to eight of Kasich's most senior staffers to a meeting on "State-Land Leasing - Strategy and Communications" on 8/20/12. This is nearly identical to the title of the original memo: "Oil & Gas State Lands Leasing: Draft Outline for Communication Plan (8/20/12)". The only other invited guests were top officials from the agency responsible for the memo, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR).
Among the Kasich staff invited were:
- Kasich Communication Director Scott Milburn
- Chief of Staff Beth Hansen
- Senior Advisor Jai Chabria
- Former Director of Legislative Affairs Matt Carle (now Kasich's campaign manager)
- Former policy advisor Craig Butler (now Kasich's Ohio EPA Director)
The meeting request was received in the same Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) public records request by the Sierra Club as the original memo.
"John Kasich is a bully. He's looking more like Ohio's answer to Chris Christie," said ProgressOhio Executive Director Brian Rothenberg. "First came the plans to make life tough for those that disagree with him and now the endless staff cover-ups."
More About The Original Fracking Conspiracy Memo
The communication plan states that efforts to frack in Ohio's state parks "will be met with zealous resistance by environmental activist opponents, who are skilled propagandists." It sets out a comprehensive strategy to "marginalize" those on a lengthy fracking P.R. hit list, including the Sierra Club, Ohio Environmental Council, OMBWatch.org and state legislators. The document then lists "current and potential" allies in this effort, including the Governor's Office, JobsOhio, Ohio EPA, Ohio Department of Health, Halliburton, Chamber of Commerce, Youngstown Vindicator, and several other news outlets.
A PDF copy of the communications document is available online here.
Labeled "Draft Outline for Communication Plan (8/20/12)", it was buried among a sea of records given to the Sierra Club by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources in response to a public information request.
The stated intent of the plan is to "build understanding, foster support, counter opponents' criticism and minimize public concerns about the initiative (to drill on public lands.)" (The legislature passed HB133 which allows for such drilling in June 2011.)
The plan claims neutral parties, such as "ordinary citizens concerned about their families' health", will be "vulnerable to messaging by opponents that the initiative represents dangerous and radical state policy by Gov. Kasich." It claims opponents will be emotional and aggressive; legally and physically halt drilling; create public panic about perceived health risks; slant news coverage against us (Kasich Administration); and blue the public perception of ODNRs regulatory role."
"What is outrageous is that the document both recognizes the regulatory role of ODNR and then goes on to list the very organizations it regulates as allies in their propaganda campaign to drill in state parks," said Brian Rothenberg, Executive Director of ProgressOhio. "It is bad enough that corporations influence policy through ALEC and Citizens United, but these are full-stop Nixonian tactics."
In a later section the plan says one of its three objectives is to "marginalize the effectiveness of communications by adversaries about the initiative."
"This is an unprecedented collusion between oil and gas companies and the agencies that regulate them. This isn't just bad news for our parks and forests, its bad news for our democracy," Brian Kunkemoeller, Sierra Club Ohio Chapter Conservation Program Coordinator.
Astonishingly, the document contains a Nixonian-type hit list of opponents, said Rothenberg. Listed as ODNR adversaries are:
- The Sierra Club
- The Ohio Environmental Council
- OhioFracktion
- Rep. Robert Hagan
- Rep. Nickie Antonio
- EcoWatch
- Waterkeeper Alliance
- OMB Watch
- Marcellus Earth First
- Marcellus Shale Protest
- The Natural Resource Defense Council
Among the non-governmental allies listed are:
- the Natural Resources Advisory Board
- Chambers of Commerce including the state, Canton, Cambridge and U.S Chamber
- Ohio Oil and Gas Association
- Halliburton
- America's Natural Gas Alliance/Regina Hopper
- Frac Focus
"It is simply astonishing that the agency tasked with protecting the environment would see Halliburton as a friend and the Sierra Club as an enemy," said Deb Nardone, Director of the Sierra Club Beyond Natural Gas Campaign. "It's shocking to see an orchestrated P.R. hit job in black and white."
Katherine McFate, President and CEO of the Center for Effective Government, which operates OMB Watch, one of the groups targeted in the plan, stated, "There are valid concerns about fracking, which the plan seems to disregard. A recent Associated Press investigation found documented cases of water contamination from fracking in Ohio, and other studies have shown a link between earthquakes and the drilling practice, including one in Youngstown in late 2011. The Ohio DNR should be spending its time and resources wisely, protecting citizens from real harm rather than denying known risks."
The Sierra Club is the most enduring and influential grassroots environmental organization in the United States. We amplify the power of our 3.8 million members and supporters to defend everyone's right to a healthy world.
(415) 977-5500LATEST NEWS
Republicans Funded by Arms Industry Fume Over Biden Threat to Withhold Bombs From Israel
"What did we do after we were attacked in Pearl Harbor?" asked Sen. Lindsey Graham. "We dropped two nuclear weapons on two Japanese cities."
May 09, 2024
Congressional Republicans funded by the arms industry lashed out Wednesday over U.S. President Joe Biden's belated threat to withhold American weaponry from Israel if it launches a full-scale ground invasion of the Gaza city of Rafah, which is currently facing a humanitarian nightmare.
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), who received hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign donations from pro-Israel interests and the weapons industry during his 2020 reelection campaign, declared that Biden's threat "put our friends in Israel in a box."
"What did we do after we were attacked in Pearl Harbor?" Graham, who previously encouraged Israel to "level" Gaza, said in a Fox News appearance late Wednesday. "We dropped two nuclear weapons on two Japanese cities... What is Joe Biden doing? He's making it impossible for allies throughout the world to trust us, he's making it hard on Israel to win."
Lindsey Graham: What do we do after we were attacked in Pearl Harbor? We dropped nuclear weapons on Japanese cities pic.twitter.com/kh7RU4flDw
— Acyn (@Acyn) May 9, 2024
Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) echoed Graham, falsely claiming that Biden has "imposed an arms embargo on Israel" and endorsed "a Hamas victory against Israel." Lockheed Martin, one of the world's biggest weapons manufacturers and a major beneficiary of Israel's war on Gaza, was the fourth-largest contributor to Cotton's campaign committee in 2020, the last time the senator ran for reelection.
The notion that Biden's threat to withhold future weapons deliveries to Israel undercuts the country's ability to assail Gaza was contradicted by a U.S. official who toldThe Washington Post that "the Israeli military has enough weapons supplied by the U.S. and other partners to conduct the Rafah operation if it chooses to cast aside U.S. objections."
Earlier this week, numerous media outlets reported that the Biden administration opted to delay a shipment of thousands of Boeing-made bombs over concerns about Israel's impending assault on Rafah. On Tuesday, Israeli ground forces entered Rafah and seized control of the city's border crossing with Egypt, imperiling humanitarian aid operations there.
Biden, who has approved more than 100 weapons sales to Israel and billions of dollars in additional aid since the October 7 Hamas-led attack, falsely said Wednesday that Israeli forces "haven't gone in Rafah yet," raising questions over the practical implications of his threat to withhold U.S. weapons in the case of a ground invasion.
But Republicans nevertheless fumed over Biden's approach, showing no concern for the humanitarian catastrophe that Israel's military—armed to the teeth with American weapons—has inflicted on Gaza.
In a letter to the president on Wednesday, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.)—both major recipients of arms industry cash throughout their careers—wrote that delaying weapons deliveries "risks emboldening Israel's enemies and undermining the trust that other allies and partners have in the United States."
Johnson and McConnell, along with most congressional Democrats, supported a sprawling foreign aid package last month that authorized around $17 billion in military assistance for Israel. Reutersreported that Lockheed Martin and RTX—formerly Raytheon—both "stand to profit" from the measure.
Raytheon's PAC donated $18,500 to McConnell's 2020 reelection campaign.
Contrary to the position of congressional Republicans, progressive foreign policy analysts and anti-war organizations said Biden would be adhering to U.S. law if he halts weapons deliveries to Israel. Section 620I of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 prohibits U.S. military assistance to any country that is impeding the provision of American humanitarian aid—something Israel has done repeatedly.
"Enforcing our laws and making clear that the U.S. will not transfer offensive weapons to support a disastrous military operation that endangers millions of Palestinians throughout Gaza is vital," Sara Haghdoosti, executive director of Win Without War, said in a statement Wednesday.
"U.S. law gives the president ample power to ensure that no more U.S. arms go to [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu's brutal war in Gaza," said Haghdoosti. "With a crucial cease-fire deal within reach, added pressure from the Biden administration can help end this war and create a path to a sustainable peace for people in Israel and Palestine. We once again urge the president to use every tool available to him to secure a cease-fire in Gaza and the release of all hostages."
Keep ReadingShow Less
Biden 'Moving the Goal Post' With Threat to Withhold Bombs From Israel
"Now Israel has a green light to destroy Rafah in slow motion," said one critic.
May 08, 2024
While some Palestine defenders on Wednesday welcomed U.S. President Joe Biden's threat to withhold bombs and artillery shells from Israel if it launches a major invasion of Rafah, critics noted that an invasion is already underway and accused the American leader of walking back a previous "red line" warning against an Israeli assault on the southern Gaza city.
Biden said for the first time that he'll stop sending bombs, artillery shells, and other arms to Israel if Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu orders a major invasion of Rafah, where more than a million Palestinians forcibly displaced from other parts of the embattled Gaza Strip are sheltering alongside around 280,000 local residents.
Referring to Israel's use of U.S.-supplied 2,000-pound bombs—which can destroy an entire city block and have been used in some of the war's worst atrocities—Biden toldCNN's Erin Burnett that "civilians have been killed in Gaza as a consequence of those bombs and other ways in which they go after population centers."
Even the U.S. military—which has killed more foreign civilians than any other armed force on the planet since the end of World War II—won't use 2,000-pound bombs in urban areas. But Israel does, including when it launched a strike to assassinate a single Hamas commander by dropping the munitions on the Jabalia refugee camp last October, killing more than 120 civilians.
"If they go into Rafah, I'm not supplying the weapons that have been used historically to deal with Rafah, to deal with the cities," Biden said Wednesday.
Israeli forces have already gone into Rafah, and it was reported Tuesday that Biden was taking the unusual step of delaying shipments of two types of Boeing-made bombs to Israel to send a message to the country's far-right government. It was, however, a mixed message, as the president also earlier in the day reaffirmed his support for Israel's war on Gaza, which the International Court of Justice said is "plausibly" genocidal in a preliminary ruling in January.
Critics noted the shifting and subjective language used by Biden—who previously said that any Israeli invasion of Rafah would constitute a "red line" resulting in unspecified consequences.
"He said invading Rafah was a red line. Israel invaded Rafah anyway, bombing buildings, burning and crushing children to death," political analyst Omar Baddar said on social media. "Biden is now moving the goal post by adding a completely subjective descriptor: 'Major.' Now Israel has a green light to destroy Rafah in slow motion."
During the course of the seven-month Israeli assault on Gaza—which has killed, maimed, or left missing more than 124,000 Palestinians—Biden has said Israel has killed "too many civilians" with its "indiscriminate bombing," even as he's pushed for more and more military aid for the key ally.
Wednesday's interview came on the heels of Biden's approval of a $14.3 billion emergency military aid package to Israel, multiple moves to sidestep Congress to fast-track armed assistance, nearly $4 billion in previously authorized annual military aid, and diplomatic cover in the form of several United Nations Security Council vetoes.
Reporting that the Biden administration will delay a highly anticipated report on whether Israel is using U.S. military aid in compliance with international law also drew backlash Tuesday from human rights advocates.
Referring to Israel's U.S.-funded anti-missile system, Biden continued his supportive rhetoric during Wednesday's CNN interview, telling Burnett that "we're going to continue to make sure Israel is secure in terms of Iron Dome and their ability to respond to attacks."
But the president added that Israel's use of devastating weaponry against civilians is "just wrong," and that "we're not going to supply the weapons and artillery shells."
Some peace groups welcomed Biden's threat to withhold bombs and artillery shells from Israel, even while urging him to do more to stop his ally's genocidal onslaught.
"Biden's statement is as necessary as it is over overdue," Jewish Voice for Peace executive director Stefanie Fox said in a statement. "The U.S. already bears responsibility for months of catastrophic devastation: The nearly 40,000 Palestinians that the Israeli military has killed, the two million Palestinians being intentionally brought to the brink of famine, the decimation of all universities and almost every hospital in Gaza."
"Today's statement shows that Biden can no longer ignore the will of the majority of Americans who want a permanent cease-fire, release of all hostages, and an end to U.S. complicity in Israeli war crimes," Fox added.
Keep ReadingShow Less
House Dems Save 'MAGA Mike' Johnson From Marjorie Taylor Greene Ouster
"The GOP chaos caucus continues to do nothing for the American people and instead waste time infighting," said Rep. Pramila Jayapal, who did not support saving the far-right leader.
May 08, 2024
The majority of Democrats and Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday saved far-right Speaker Mike Johnson from Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene's attempt to oust him after less than seven months in the leadership position.
Johnson's (R-La.) election to the role in October—following the ouster of former Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), who then left Congress early—was seen as a signal of the MAGA flank's hold on the Republican Party. However, since then he has faced criticism from Greene (R-Ga.) and others for, among other things, not shutting down the government.
Greene delivered on her threatened motion to vacate—provoking boos from fellow lawmakers—after meeting with Johnson for hours on Monday and Tuesday. The final vote to table her resolution was 359-43, with 196 Republicans and 163 Democrats backing the far-right speaker. Seven Democrats voted present and 21 lawmakers did not vote.
Ten Republicans joined Greene in trying to give Johnson the boot: Reps. Andy Biggs (Ariz.), Eric Burlison (Mo.), Eli Crane (Ariz.), Warren Davidson (Ohio), Paul Gosar (Ariz.), Thomas Massie (Ky.), Alex Mooney (W.Va.), Barry Moore (Ala.), Chip Roy (Texas), and Victoria Spartz (Ind.).
Addressing the position of most Democrats, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (N.Y.) said in a statement:
Our decision to stop Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene from plunging the House of Representatives and the country into further chaos is rooted in our commitment to solving problems for everyday Americans in a bipartisan manner. We need more common sense and less chaos in Washington, D.C.
Marjorie Taylor Greene and the extreme MAGA Republicans are chaos agents. House Democrats are change agents. We will continue to govern in a reasonable, responsible, and results-oriented manner and to put people over politics all day and every day.
Some of the 32 Democrats who supported ousting Johnson framed the vote as proof that—in the words of Rep. Maxwell Alejandro Frost (Fla.)—the "GOP really can't govern" and the "chaos caucus is on display."
Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) similarly declared on social media that "the GOP chaos caucus continues to do nothing for the American people and instead waste time infighting."
"Speaker Johnson organized an amicus brief effort to overturn the 2020 election. He opposes abortion rights, trans rights, and voting rights," Jayapal also said. "That's why I did not vote to save his speakership."
Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.) also explained his vote on social media, saying: "Mike Johnson is the most ideological, right-wing speaker since the 1830s. His views and values are directly antithetical to mine. He stands for everything we, as freedom-loving Democrats, proudly stand against. I will never vote to keep him in that chair."
Congressman Mark Pocan (D-Wis.) was one of the members who voted present, which does not count for or against passage.
"Did I vote with the extremist white Christian nationalist who called a motion to vacate the speakership or did I vote to save the extremist homophobic Christian nationalist speaker to keep him in office?" Pocan said. "Neither. I voted 'present' on this sideshow."
Keep ReadingShow Less
Most Popular