Tuesday, June 10, 2008
News Southern Co. lobbying bill rivals that of Exxon-Mobil
Posted by Thomas Wheatley @thomaswheatley on Tue, Jun 10, 2008 at 4:06 PM
It takes money to make money. And when you're Atlanta-based carbon king Southern Co., it takes even more money to maintain the status quo.
The ever entertaining and informative Joe Romm at ClimateProgress passes on news of the hometown mom-and-pop business.
The nation’s energy bill is now about a trillion dollars. That means the super-rich fossil fuel companies have enormous profits they can spend on lobbying to ensure their continued dominance. How much? Jeff Goodell has the answer here:
...The 800-pound gorilla in coal politics has long been The Southern Company, the big Atlanta-based coal-burning electric utility.
Once again, Southern didn’t disappoint its friends, doling out $2.8 million in lobbying expenses in Q1 of 2008. That’s close to surpassing the All-Time Lobbying Champion of the Fossil Fuel Industry, ExxonMobil, which spent $3 million in the same period.
Last year, the company spent $14 million on handshakes and head nods in Washington, D.C.
UPDATE: Forgot to even mention this. Romm also points out that the American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity -- a King Coal front group -- spent $1.9 million in the first quarter. The Solar Energies Industries Association, in comparison, spent $75,000.
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