Fox News Watchdog

Guest blogged by Margarita (with Alex)

Glenn Beck has proclaimed this a “Summer of Restoration.” What does he want to restore? Our faith in America and a renewed sense of its exceptionalism, by teaching us the “true” history of America’s founding. Hence, the series of online seminars he calls “Glenn Beck University,” available on his website to “Insider Extreme” subscribers. The first lecture in the series (the theme of which is “Faith, Hope and Charity”) was “Faith 101”, taught by discredited revisionist historian and Mike Huckabee buddy David Barton, founder and president of the Christian nationalist group WallBuilders.

Wallbuilders claims to be an education organization which presents “America’s forgotten history and heroes, with an emphasis on the moral, religious, and constitutional foundation on which America was built – a foundation which, in recent years, has been seriously attacked and undermined.” Barton is the author of a slew of books and videos asserting that the modern view of separation of church and state is not consistent with the views of the Founders.

Thankfully, no one wrote on a blackboard, wept, called anyone a socialist Marxist racist Commie, or exhorted us students to take back America – this is a university after all, dear reader, and we must remain dignified. Barton’s lecture was called “The Black-Robed Regiment” and it described the strong role of “preachers” (as he called them) in shaping the American Revolution. He mentioned clergymen Samuel Cooper, Jonathan Mayhew (who is said to have coined the phrase “no taxation without representation”) and George Whitefield (who urged the colonies to independence and later helped establish the American military.) Here are some other points Barton made to advance his argument:

- All the thoughts articulated in the Declaration of Independence had been preached in pulpits before 1776.
- Preachers mobilized their parishioners to fight in the Revolution and sometimes led them themselves.
- Preachers regularly gave “election sermons” advising congregations what God says about the type of leaders we should have.
- When the Constitutional Convention got bogged down, delegates took a three-day “prayer break”, then came back refreshed and sailed through the rest of the job.

Let’s take these points one by one. First, Barton cites Alice Baldwin, author of The New England Clergy and the American Revolution (1928) as the source for his assertion that the Declaration of Independence was based on preaching from the pulpit. While Baldwin’s scholarship may be reputable, Barton fails to inform his “class” of a few additional considerations: one, since the churches in colonial America also served as community centers, it was not unusual to hear sermons given on just about any issue of interest to the community, including issues we today would consider secular; two, Enlightenment (non-religious) ideas were being widely debated, so it is very possible that these ideas might have infused even the thinking of the preachers. The fact that ideas in the Declaration were first preached in church doesn’t meant that they were necessarily religious or Bible-based.

Yes, preachers did mobilize their parishioners. Now this is interesting: some of the “preachers” were black. They included one Rev.Wentworth Cheswell, who apparently made a midnight ride of his own about the same time as Paul Revere did – except he rode to New Hampshire instead of Lexington (and then stayed there). If he hadn’t, maybe Longfellow’s poem would have read:

Listen, my children, while I tell
Of the midnight ride of Wentworth Cheswell.

“Take the preachers out and we don’t have the same result,” said Barton, lamenting that we didn’t hear about their contributions any more.

And I sat there shaking my head. Dearie me, what activists the clergy were back in this country’s early days! Yet this March, Glenn Beck issued guidelines to help you know if your church has been infiltrated by Marxists, like, watch if your minister uses horrendous terms like “social justice”. Or, make sure your church puts God first and politics and government last. (Do “election sermons” fall under those guidelines by any chance?)

I can’t help but think that Glennzo and his cronies wouldn’t have been so kind to these “preachers” if they were alive today. Take Rev. Jonathan Mayhew, mentioned above. He was a Unitarian (gasp) and his views were so liberal he was almost refused entry into the clergy. Some claim he incited a mob to smash someone’s house. Maybe there are advantages to having been dead for two hundred years.

As for the claim that delegates to the Constitutional Convention took a three-day prayer break and came back (presumably) divinely inspired – well, here is what Chris Rodda, author of Liars for Jesus and researcher at the Military Religious Freedom Foundation had to say about this on my Beck U. classmate Keith Olbermann’s show last week:

“He had the one about the Constitutional Convention taking a three- day break to go to church. In reality, what that was, was they took a break for a couple of days for the delegates, one from each state, to hold a meeting to hash out some stuff. And it coincided with the Fourth of July. Some of the Fourth of July celebrations were being held at the church. Barton’s version is that they all went to church for three days, came back and then everything was hunky-dory and they were able to finish writing the Constitution…Also, George Washington didn’t even stay for the religious service. He stayed for the oration by a law student, and then he split to go hang out with the — his former fellow Army officers at some event.”

I had decided to go Back to School since my knees are troubling me too much to spend the summer hiking or taking salsa lessons; but after trying to separate fact from fiction after 35 minutes (wait, didn’t I pay for an hour?) of David Barton’s “history” lesson, I need to go ice not only my knees, but my head. So I’ll just leave you with a quote from our Founding Father, Thomas Jefferson:

Believing … that religion is a matter which lies solely between man and his God… that the legislative powers of government reach actions only, and not opinions, I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should “make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof,” thus building a wall of separation between church and State.

Hope 10, featuring David Buckner, airs this evening at 8 PM (ET) at Glenn Beck dot com. I’ll get the ice ready, you bring the smelling salts.

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Numerous mainstream media outlets have recently hosted right-wing “Atlas Shrugs” blogger Pamela Geller to discuss the controversy surrounding a proposed Islamic community center set to be built blocks away from Ground Zero. However, Geller’s history of outrageous, inflammatory and false claims, particularly when it comes to issues related to Islam, demonstrate that she cannot be expected to make accurate statements and should not be rewarded with a platform on national television.

Media bring Geller into the mainstream, telling nation she is a credible source

MSNBC hosts Geller, who suggests the Islamic center is a “triumphal mosque” on “conquered lands.” MSNBC News July 13 edition of NBC’s Nightly News, Geller said of the proposed Islamic community center: “Why should there be a mosque in there? On the top floor, looking down at Ground Zero?” Under her name, NBC featured the text: “Stop Islamization of America.” Geller then added: “It’s offensive to people.”

CNN Newsroom hosted Geller to say building the community center near Ground Zero is a “kick in the head” to Americans. On the June 6 edition of CNN Newsroom, Geller said that for Muslims to “pray next to” Ground Zero is “repugnant,” and a “kick in the head” to Americans. Journalist Ahmed Soliman pushed back, saying:

Fringe groups like Pamela’s, what they are doing is number one, spreading the erroneous misinterpretation that the terrorists like al Qaeda want to spread about Islam. And number two, simultaneously feeding the propaganda that al Qaeda uses to recruit which is that America is anti-Muslim. Now, Ms. Geller and her group may be anti-Muslim, but the rest of America, for the most part, is not. [retrieved via Nexis]

Fox & Friends hosted Geller to say building the community center near Ground Zero is “stab[bing] Americans in the eye.” On the May 27 edition of Fox News’ Fox & Friends, Geller defended her billboards that provide people with information on how to “Leav[e] Islam” as being religious freedom, and criticized the building of a mosque in New York City near Ground Zero as “stab[bing] Americans in the eye.” 

Fox News’ Huckabee hosted Geller to discuss Islamic community center.  On the May 15 edition of Fox News’ Huckabee, Mike Huckabee hosted Geller to discuss the community center that is to be built near Ground Zero.

Geller routinely uses downright outrageous, hateful rhetoric

Geller: Obama “is a third worlder and a coward” who’s “appeas[ing] his Islamic overlords.” In an April 13 blog post, Gellerheadlined a November 9, 2009, post “Obama Goes Full On Nazi: Subject: “Democratic consultant says he got a warning from White House after appearing on Fox News.”

Geller: ” ‘Kick a Jew’ days … are part of this growing evil Evil unleashed with an anti-semite in the White House.” In a December 14, 2009, post, Geller wrote:

It’s as if the floodgates of hell have been thrown open. The moratorium on the holocaust is officially over and all the savages are free to incite, hate and destroy. Clearly those “Kick a Jew” days discussed here and here in schools are part of this growing evil Evil [sic] unleashed with an anti-semite in the White House. 

Geller: “Obama is bringing his jihad to Illinois.” In a December 15, 2009, post on Atlas Shrugs entitled, “Muslim Tries to Light a Bomb on DC to Denver Aircraft,” Pamela Geller wrote, “NBC is reporting that a muslim [sic] passenger attempted to light an explosive device on board an aircraft from Washington to Denver, sources tell NBC News — this on the day that Obama said jihad and Islamic terrorism does not exist (neither does his birth certificate).” The NBC report to which she linked — a “breaking news” Twitter feed – said only that “a passenger attempted to light an explosive device on board an aircraft from Washington to Denver, sources tell NBC News.” The post made no mention of the passenger’s religion. Geller called the passenger “[t]he jihadi committing this act of Islamic terror.” Before Geller updated her post to reflect new information, she wrote: “Fighter jets were scrambled to bring the plane down. G-d only knows what would have happened if the the [sic] air marshals on board hadn’t tackled him…”

Geller falsely claimed Farrakhan, Ayers and Wright visited White House. In a Marcy 26 post, Geller wrote:

There are consequential, disturbing revelations to be found when flipping through the visitors list at the White House. Bill Ayers is there no less than three times, Louis Farrakhan at least once, but there is also a separate visit for his family, and the infamous hater Jeremiah Wright is there at least five times (four times under Jeremy, one under Jeremiah) 

She added, “These are terrorists, inciters to genocide, America haters, the underbelly of an ugly America — and they are in the House.” In fact, the New York Times reported back in October 2009 that the White House said ”visitors by the names of William Ayers and Jeremiah Wright were not the same two men who stirred controversy for Mr. Obama in his campaign.” In January, White House ethics lawyer Norm Eisen stated that the “Louis Farrakhan” in the list is not the well-known individual with that name.

Geller absurdly claimed Obama administration wearing purple as sign of solidarity with SEIU. In a March 26 post titled, “Flying the gangsta colors at the White House: SEIU, The color purple,” Geller wrote (emphasis in the original), “Yes, it seems this can no longer be written off as pure coincidence. The color purple is the fighting color of this administration. It is painfully clear who and what is running the show. Historically the color purple has signified royalty which, ironically, is exactly how the power mad pres thinks of himself. But this is SEIU, all the way. The Chicago way.”  As evidence, Geller claimed Obama wore a purple tie when he signed the health care law.  But in other photos and videos, the tie appears to be a grey-ish blue. Geller also posted a photo of Democratic lawmakers who she said were wearing “purple ties,” but they are clearly blue. And she claimed that Robert Gibbs and Andy Stern wore “matching purple bracelets.” However Gibbs had explained in a March 15 tweet that he was wearing the bracelet in support of a family friend who “is bravely fighting cancer.”

Geller baselessly claimed Obama may have visited Louis Farrakhan when he went to Chicago for Memorial Day. In a My 30 post, Geller wrote: “How did the President of the United States spend his Memorial day weekend? Honoring the glorious dead by laying a wreath at Arlington cemetery?? Not a chance. It is unclear, but he may have pow-wowed with race baiter, Jew-hater Louis Farrakhan, a frequent visitor to the White House.” However, Geller provides no information that suggests Obama met with Farrakhan. She noted that Obama attended a dinner at the home of Marty Nesbitt, which is near the home of Farrakhan, and that the press pool reportedly clashed with some of Farrakhan’s men, concluding, “The whole story stinks. Did Obama see Farrakhan or not?”

Geller calls Obama “the Muslim president.” Geller’s blog contains 267 posts tagged, “Muslim in the White House?” In a June 2, 2009, post, Geller called Obama “The Muslim president.” Calling it a “critical issue,” Geller wrote in January 2008 that “Obama went to a madrassa in Jakarta,” that “he practiced Islam” and that “if Obama makes it to the big house, Israel is screwed. Finished.” On May 30, 2009, Geller wrote that with his Cairo speech, Obama “proved everything I said to be true.” In fact, CNN debunked the “madrassa” falsehood back in January 2007 and as Newsweek stated, “Barack Obama has never been Muslim and never practiced Islam.”

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On “Morning Joe” Monday, MSNBC host Joe Scarborough called Fox News chairman Roger Ailes “the most powerful voice in the Republican Party,” and the channel itself “the only organizing institution for the GOP.”

Scarborough said this at the tail end of a discussion of former GOP presidential candidate Mike Huckabee. Guest Mark Halperin noted that Huckabee’s Fox News show has won him many new converts who might be inclined to support him in a potential 2012 run.

Scarborough called Fox News “the wild card” for Huckabee:

“That is the wild card. If you’d wanna win, seriously, Roger Ailes, everybody goes who runs the Republican–Roger Ailes is the most powerful voice in the Republican Party. He has set up something that — it is the only organizing institution for the GOP because everybody’s let Republicans down in Washington DC. It’s Roger.”

WATCH:

Read more: Roger Ailes Fox News, Fox News, Joe Scarborough MSNBC, Video, Joe Scarborough, Roger Ailes, Morning Joe, Media News

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Right-wing media figures have repeatedly claimed that it’s “time we stopped blaming Bush” in discussions of the Gulf oil spill. However, under the Bush administration, federal offshore drilling regulators relaxed regulatory standards and were plagued by ethics scandals.

Conservatives
say it’s “about time we stopped blaming Bush,”
“ridiculous” and “offensive” to do so

Giuliani: “It’s about time we stopped blaming
Bush.” On the June
17 edition
of MSNBC’s Morning Joe, Rudy
Giuliani
said President Obama has “been president now for 18 months” so “it’s
about time
we stopped blaming Bush.”

From the
June
17 edition of Morning Joe:

JOE SCARBOROUGH (host): In the role of devil’s advocate, we hear
that we had the technology to stop this, in 2002, though, Dick Cheney
and his
energy task force said, no, we’re not going to take an extra step.

GIULIANI:
I have no — I have no idea what Dick Cheney did five or six years ago.

SCARBOROUGH: Isn’t
it important to know?

GIULIANI:
Of course it’s important to know

SCARBOROUGH: It’s
part of the story.

GIULIANI:
It’s important
to know as part of the history of this but the reality is, he’s been
president
now for 18 months. It’s about time we stopped blaming Bush.

Perino: Democrats are “ridiculous” and
“offensive” to lay any blame for oil spill on Bush administration.  On June 14 on Fox News’ Fox &
Friends, former Bush press secretary Dana Perino said that it
was
“offensive,” “small,” and “ridiculous” to put any blame for the Gulf oil
spill
on the Bush administration.

From the
June
14 edition of Fox & Friends:

BRIAN
KILMEADE (co-host): So there you have it on the Sunday shows as if the president
Bush
left yesterday, he’s blaming. I mean, does President Bush have to go
back, or
someone like yourself go back and say what you inherited?

PERINO:
Well, you know, we could, but I think that the American people by now
they’ve
– it’s gone from being, okay, yeah, we get it, you’re blaming them to
being
ridiculous to now just being offensive and I think they look so small.
And I
think about those leaders — they know that that is not true. They know
that
there are answers to every single one of those things and they chose not
to
talk about them.

And if
you — if one of those reporters had had the guts to say name one, name
one
regulatory piece that was repealed during the Bush administration that
led to
this or that. And instead they don’t ask them about their role in the
housing
crisis or in the banking crisis. And I think I’m pretty sure that there
are a
lot of Democrats suggesting that we also try to drill for our own
resources
here in America
because we have a national security and national economic security
situation
when it comes to our oil resources so it’s just ridiculous.

KILMEADE:
Right. Dana, also there’s been at least 30,000 different wells drilled
over the
last 50 years in the Gulf. There’s never been any accidents. Because one
happens, it’s George Bush’s fault?

PERINO:
Right. That’s
why it sounds so ridiculous. And I think, you know, if it was children
that
parents would fight – you know, children fighting in the back seat of a
road
trip, I think the parents would finally turn around and say, shut up or
we’re
going to kick you out of the car.

Morris: “What’s he going to do, posthumously
blame Bush?” In a May 28
interview with Newsmax, Dick Morris responded to
the Obama
administration noting the lack of oversight of the Bush administration’s
Minerals Management Service (MMS), which oversees offshore drilling, by
asking if Obama would “posthumously blame Bush.”

Huckabee: “Next, George Bush will be responsible
for the kidnapping of the Lindbergh baby.”
In an interview on Fox News’ Hannity,
Fox News host Mike Huckabee said it was “outrageous” for blame to be
laid on
the Bush administration for MMS mismanagement, and that “next George
Bush will
be responsible for the kidnapping of the Lindbergh baby.”

From the
June
4 edition of Fox News’ Hannity (via
Nexis):

TUCKER CARLSON: So, earlier this week,
the center for American progress basically the in-house think tank of
the Obama
administration from which many Obama administration officials have come,
issuing a report referring to this oil spill as quote “Dick Cheney’s
Katrina” and trying to lay the blame, you can imagine, on the now
retired
former vice president and the reasoning was so tortured and stupid, I
won’t
repeat it here. We are seeing this again and again from the left trying
to make
this somehow a product of conservatism, this bill.

HUCKABEE: That, to me, is an outrageous,
ridiculous approach. I mean, next George Bush will be responsible for
the
kidnapping of the Lindbergh baby. I mean, where does this stuff stop?
You know,
at some point is I’ve been trying to say, Barack Obama bought the cow,
it’s his
to milk. He can no longer blame everything he experiences on George Bush
and
Dick Cheney and the Republicans. He has a majority in the House. He has
it in
the Senate. He got the White House, and he’s had it for a year and a
half. He
has to man-up and accept responsibility to be president of the United
States.

O’Reilly: “Dishonest” for Democrats to “continue
to lay it all on Bush.” On the June 14 edition
of Fox News’ The O’Reilly Factor,
host Bill O’Reilly said that “there was not much difference in the Bush oil
policy
than the Clinton
oil policy” and that “there’s plenty of blame to go around,” so “for the
Democrats to continue to lay it all on Bush is flat out dishonest.”

From the
June
14 edition of Fox News’ The O’Reilly
Factor (via Nexis):

O’REILLY: President Bush did ban drilling
off Florida’s
west coast. And there was not much difference in the Bush oil policy
than the Clinton oil policy. Both
presidents allowed deep water drilling in some areas, as did President
Obama.
And Congress went along with it.

So there’s plenty of blame to go around.
And for the Democrats to continue to lay it all on Bush is flat out
dishonest.

Hannity: Chris Dodd has “lost his mind” to blame
Bush for spill; “he should keep his opinions to himself.” On the May 25 edition of Hannity,
host Sean Hannity responded to Sen. Chris Dodd’s comments
about
the Bush administration’s role in the mismanagement of MMS by saying
“clearly,
he lost his mind” and that “maybe a guy like Chris Dodd, who was shamed
into
retirement and amid the stench of corruption — maybe he should keep his
opinions to himself.”

From the May

25 edition of Hannity
(via Nexis):

HANNITY: Now that the administration says
they’re in charge and they own this crisis, I guess that means anything
and
everything that happens from this moment on is on their watch. They are
responsible. They will be held accountable. But at least one Democrat
isn’t on
message and is still blaming all of this, believe it or not, on George
W. Bush.
Watch this.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DODD:  They come into office a year
ago with all of this. And so after the last eight years of…

IMUS: Oh, come on!

DODD: … a regulatory environment where
… drill, drill, drill. You — what — I think you were quoting “Drill,
drill drill” a few months ago, weren’t you, and Sarah Palin, the two of
you? Drill, drill, drill?

IMUS: Now, I wasn’t saying it. Don’t try
to lump me with Sarah Palin. And don’t use that lame excuse to me about
the
Bush administration. Have you lost your mind!

DODD: Not at all.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HANNITY: Well, clearly, he lost his mind,
and I’m glad Imus was there to call him out on that. Now, maybe a guy
like
Chris Dodd, who was shamed into retirement and amid the stench of
corruption –
maybe he should keep his opinions to himself.

Hannity: “When do we get over this idea that
everything” is Bush’s fault? Perino: “They can’t help themselves” –
“rinse and repeat.” Later on the same
edition of his Fox News program, Hannity asked Perino: “Eighteen
months
Barack Obama has been president of the United States. When do we get
over
this idea that everything is George W. Bush’s fault?” She responded,
“[T]hey
seem that they can’t help themselves. Like Chris Dodd, right, like, on
the
shampoo bottle, it says “rinse and repeat”:

From the May

25 edition of Hannity
(via Nexis):

HANNITY: Let me deal with the issue of
Imus and Chris Dodd. I mean, the economy is Bush’s fault. The financial
crisis
is Bush’s fault. The terrorist, you know, watch list is Bush’s fault.
Everything is Bush’s fault. Eighteen months Barack Obama has been
president of
the United States.
When do we get over this idea that everything is George W. Bush’s fault?

PERINO: Well, they seem that they can’t
help themselves. Like Chris Dodd, right, like, on the shampoo bottle, it
says
“rinse and repeat”…

(LAUGHTER)

PERINO: That’s all they do. It’s, like,
over and over and over again. And it’s a common response.

Weasel Zippers: Every time a Democrat engages in
“blame-Bush nonsense” then “we get one free shot to the face.” Conservative blog Weasel Zippers responded to House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer
(D-MD) noting MMS
deregulation under the Bush administration by saying, “There’s only one
way to
stop this blame-Bush nonsense, every time a Dem does it we get one free
shot to
the face. I’ll do my patriotic duty and volunteer my services.”

Andrew Malcolm: Dodd is “eager to spread
blame elsewhere.” Los Angeles Times
blogger and former Laura
Bush press secretary Andrew Malcolm responded to Sen. Dodd’s comments by saying that
“Chris
Dodd has been in the U.S. Senate now for five six-year terms and might
have
been looking into drilling safety precautions instead of special
mortgage
deals. So he too is eager to spread blame elsewhere.”

Radio Equalizer: Progressives have “turned to an
old standby: gratuitous Bush-bashing.”
Brian Maloney, writing at the conservative blog Radio Equalizer,
responded
to a progressive radio discussion about deregulation of the oil industry
by
saying that “with Obama’s inaction on the rapidly-escalating Gulf oil
crisis
becoming increasingly clear, his ‘progressive’ minions have turned to an
old
standby: gratuitous Bush-bashing.”

Inspector
General reports detail MMS ethics violations during Bush admin.

Inspector General found “a culture
where the acceptance of
gifts from oil and gas companies were widespread” in Louisiana MMS
office under Bush. The Department of
Interior’s Office of Inspector General
(OIG) investigated allegations
against MMS employees for conduct that “occurred prior to 2007″ in
the Lake Charles, Louisiana, district, and “found a culture where the
acceptance of gifts from oil and gas companies were widespread
throughout that
office,” and that prior to 2007, “receiving gifts such as
hunting trips, fishing trips, and meals from oil companies appears to
have been
a generally accepted practice by MMS inspectors and supervisors in the
Gulf of
Mexico region.” MMS subsequently “provid[ed] additional ethics
training to employees.”

IG investigation found email porn,
illegal drug use at Louisiana MMS office
under Bush. The
Lake Charles
investigation also found that
– in addition to accepting gifts from oil companies– MMS employees
“admitted to using illegal drugs during their employment at MMS,”
including a clerical worker who said “he had used crystal
methamphetamine the night prior to coming to work at MMS,” and an
inspector who “admitted that he might have been under the influence of
the
drug at work after using it the day before.” Moreover, while reviewing
MMS
employees’ email accounts “from 2005 to 2009,” the OIG found
“numerous instances of pornography and other inappropriate material on
the
e-mail accounts of 13 employees, six of whom have resigned.”

IG: Bush MMS employee negotiated a job
with drilling company while
inspecting their platforms. The IG report states
that a Lake Charles MMS employee, who now works for the Island Operating
Company, an oil and gas production firm, negotiated a job with the
company
while inspecting IOC platforms.  

Source told OIG that some Bush MMS
inspectors allowed oil and gas
companies to fill out their own inspection forms. From the May 24 report on
the Lake Charles MMS office:

Another
confidential source told investigators that some MMS inspectors had
allowed oil
and gas production company personnel located on the platform to fill out
inspection forms. The forms would then be completed or signed by the
inspector
and turned in for review. According to the source, operating company
personnel
completed the inspection forms using pencils, and MMS inspectors would
write on
top of the pencil in ink and turn in the completed form.

We
reviewed a total of 556 files to look for any alteration of
pencil and ink markings, notations, or signatures. We found a small
number with
pencil and ink variations; however, we could not discern if any
fraudulent
alterations were present on these forms.

Inspector General: “Culture of ethical
failure” at Colorado MMS office
under Bush. The
Office of
Inspector General also issued a report on
September 9, 2008, stating that several investigations uncovered
a ”culture of ethical failure” at the Lakewood, Colorado,
MMS office. The report stated that “between 2002 and 2006, nearly 1/3 of
the entire RIK [Royalties In Kind] staff socialized with, and received a
wide
array of gifts and gratuities from, oil and gas companies with whom RIK
was
conducting official business.” In addition, the investigation found a
“culture of substance abuse and promiscuity in the RIK program – both
within the program… and in consort with industry. Internally, several
staff
admitted to illegal drug use as well as illicit sexual
encounters.” The report further stated:

Our
investigation revealed that many RIK employees simply felt that federal
government ethics standards and DOI policies were not applicable to them
because of their “unique” role in MMS. When interviewed, many RIK
employees said they felt that in order to effectively perform their
official
duties, they needed to interact in social settings with industry
representatives to obtain “market intelligence.” Some felt their free
attendance at industry functions was an absolute necessity given that it
was
industry’s practice to conduct business over lunch, dinner, and golf
outings.

One
RIK employee opined that because RIK regularly paid a major
producer to transport oil, it was perfectly appropriate for him to
attend a
“treasure hunt” in the desert with all expenses paid by the producer.
Another RIK employee went so far as to say that RIK’s goal was to be
“part
of industry.”

In September
2009, Interior
Secretary Ken Salazar announced plans
to end the royalty-in-kind program, which collected royalties in oil and
gas,
rather than cash.

Bush MMS reports touted importance of
offshore
drilling. Bush’s MMS
released a report
in 2004 – titled Deep Water:
Where the Energy Is — that stated, “our best source of new
domestic energy resources lies in the deep water Gulf of
Mexico and other frontier areas.” MMS reported that due to
“declining production” in “near-shore, shallow waters” in
the Gulf of Mexico, “energy companies
have focused their attention on oil and gas resources in water depths of
1,000
feet and beyond.” MMS estimated that “the deep water regions of the
Gulf of Mexico may contain 56 billion barrels of oil equivalent, or
enough to
meet U.S.
demand for 7-1/2 years at current rates.” Bush’s MMS also released a
2008 report titled
Deepwater Gulf of Mexico 2008:
America’s
Offshore Energy Future.

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Mike Huckabee falsely claimed that under President Obama, the national debt is “eight times” what it was under President Bush. In fact, the total public federal debt on May 6 was 1.2 times larger than it was when Obama entered office.

Huckabee falsely asserts debt has
increased “eight times” under Obama

Huckabee: “[A]n
unbelievable debt — eight times in President Obama’s administration of what it
was under George Bush.” On the May 7 edition of Fox News’
Your World with Neil Cavuto,
Huckabee said:

People aren’t into ideology right
now. What they’re into is the practical solution to real problems: overspending,
overborrowing, and dealing with this train wreck that we see coming as a result
of an unbelievable debt — eight times in President Obama’s administration of
what it was under George Bush, when people were mad at Bush for running it up.

Federal statistics: Debt was $10.6
trillion under Bush, is now $12.9 trillion

Treasury website:
Debt on January 20, 2009, was $10.6 trillion; debt is now $12.9
trillion. According to a search of the “Daily
History of the Debt” application
on TreasuryDirect.gov, the total outstanding public debt on January 20, 2009 —
the day Obama was inaugurated — was $10,626,877,048,913.08. The total debt on
May 6 was $12,932,913,325,200.66.

$12.9 trillion is
1.2 times larger than $10.6 trillion. If the total
national debt had increased “eight times” under Obama, the current debt would be
$84.8 trillion.

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