WASHINGTON--(ENEWSPF)--February 1 - On Monday, http://hoeven.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ID=e950df98-30f9-48e1-aaac-ec36c78d771b" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Sen. John Hoeven (R-N.D.), along with 44 co-sponsors, introduced a bill ( http://maplight.org/us-congress/bill/112-s-2041/1030927/total-contributions" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">S 2041) that would grant Congress the authority to approve the Keystone pipeline. President Obama has already said no to granting approval for the construction project, an outcome accelerated by language in the pay-roll tax law that required Obama to make a decision by late February. Construction of the pipeline that would span from Alberta, Canada to the Gulf of Mexico is supported by the American Petroleum Institute, the Association of Oil Pipe Lines, the Consumer Energy Alliance, the Independent Petroleum Association of America, the Industrial Energy Consumers of America, and the National Petrochemical & Refiners Association.
Below is an analysis conducted by MapLight of campaign contributions to senators from individuals and organizations connected to the Oil & Gas industry, made between July 1, 2005 and June 30, 2011.
- Out of the 36 senators who have the http://maplight.org/us-congress/interest%23industry=Oil%20&;%20Gas" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Oil & Gas Industry amongst their top 10 contributing industry groups, only five senators did not co-sponsor the bill.
- Nineteen of the top 20 recipients of campaign contributions connected to the Oil & Gas industry co-sponsored the bill, the lone exception being Mary Landrieu (D-La.), who received a total of $424,700 from Oil & Gas interests.
| Rank of Oil & Gas Industry as a Contributor to Lawmaker | Lawmaker | Bill Co-sponsor | Total (7/1/2005 – 6/30/2011) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sen. James Inhofe [R, OK] | Yes | $472,000 |
| Sen. John Hoeven [R, ND] | Yes | $251,789 | |
| 2 | Sen. John Cornyn [R, TX] | Yes | $1,000,725 |
| Sen. David Vitter [R, LA] | Yes | $536,000 | |
| Sen. Roger Wicker [R, MS] | Yes | $362,500 | |
| Sen. John Barrasso [R, WY] | Yes | $347,650 | |
| Sen. Kay Hutchison [R, TX] | Yes | $336,386 | |
| Sen. Thomas Coburn [R, OK] | Yes | $184,650 | |
| Sen. James Risch [R, ID] | Yes | $83,550 | |
| 3 | Sen. Mary Landrieu [D, LA] | No | $424,700 |
| Sen. Lisa Murkowski [R, AK] | Yes | $314,526 | |
| 4 | Sen. Mark Begich [D, AK] | No | $145,405 |
| Sen. Michael Enzi [R, WY] | Yes | $125,300 | |
| 5 | Sen. Pat Roberts [R, KS] | Yes | $229,200 |
| Sen. John Boozman [R, AR] | Yes | $117,602 | |
| Sen. Jeff Bingaman [D, NM] | No | $98,920 | |
| 6 | Sen. Roy Blunt [R, MO] | Yes | $529,850 |
| Sen. Jerry Moran [R, KS] | Yes | $215,051 | |
| Sen. Lamar Alexander [R, TN] | Yes | $156,050 | |
| Sen. Daniel Coats [R, IN] | Yes | $147,183 | |
| 7 | Sen. Kelly Ayotte [R, NH] | Yes | $127,783 |
| Sen. Joe Manchin [D, WV] | Yes | $122,700 | |
| Sen. Thad Cochran [R, MS] | Yes | $81,550 | |
| Sen. Mike Lee [R, UT] | Yes | $45,050 | |
| 8 | Sen. Patrick Toomey [R, PA] | Yes | $263,516 |
| Sen. Mark Pryor [D, AR] | No | $144,650 | |
| 9 | Sen. Mitch McConnell [R, KY] | Yes | $528,500 |
| Sen. Jeff Sessions [R, AL] | Yes | $104,700 | |
| Sen. Rand Paul [R, KY] | Yes | $102,940 | |
| 10 | Sen. Bob Corker [R, TN] | Yes | $339,250 |
| Sen. Robert Portman [R, OH] | Yes | $295,758 | |
| Sen. Richard Burr [R, NC] | Yes | $224,600 | |
| Sen. Marco Rubio [R, FL] | Yes | $200,750 | |
| Sen. Ben Nelson [D, NE] | No | $193,550 | |
| Sen. John Thune [R, SD] | Yes | $176,990 | |
| Sen. Jim DeMint [R, SC] | Yes | $134,073 |
Click http://maplight.org/files/Top10_Oil-and-Gas_and_Environment_with-Keystone-Pipeline-Cosponsors_0.xls" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">here to download a spreadsheet with contributions from Oil & Gas to all current members of the Senate (July 1, 2005 - June 30, 2011) and the House of Representatives (July 1, 2009 - June 30, 2011). The spreadsheet also includes contributions connected to Environmental protection interest groups.
METHODOLOGY: MapLight analysis of campaign contributions to current members of the U.S. Senate from organizations and individuals connected to the Oil & Gas industry, July 1, 2005 - June 30, 2011. Campaign contributions data source: http://opensecrets.org/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">OpenSecrets.org
A link to this data release can be found http://maplight.org/content/72927" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">here.
MapLight is a nonprofit, nonpartisan research organization that reveals money's influence on politics.
Source: commondreams.org
