Bush to Big Oil: Who Loves Ya Baby?

Bush Administration Allows Welfare for Big Oil

The Bush administration has decided to pursue the return of millions of dollars from victims of Katrina. The government says the money was mistakenly given to many of the victims, including college students whose personal belongings were damaged by the storm.

Old Uncle Sam is pretty shrewd with a dollar, eh?

Not so fast.

Every time a gallon of oil is pumped out of federally owned land, oil companies are supposed to pay Americans a royalty for the privilege of leasing the land from us.

And while aid received by the victims of Katrina is being closely scrutinized, no one bothered to inquire if Big Oil was paying its rightful share.

Surprise! Low estimates put the unpaid royalties at $10 billion annually (roughly the entire federal allocation for Katrina aid). The feds say it would take more effort than its worth to try to collect the unpaid royalties.

One report claims over $800 billion has been uncollected in California alone.

It does give you a hint about what was discussed in Dick Cheney's still secret meeting with Big Energy two weeks after he took office.