In the new book Private Empire: ExxonMobil and American Power, Steve Coll details the corporate dominance of Exxon/ExxonMobil over the past 20-plus years.
Ever since March 23, 1989, when Exxon Valdez spilled upwards of 250,000 barrels of crude oil into Prince Williams Sound, Exxon has maintained billions in yearly profits despite losing its "equity position" in the Middle East.
Through the 2000s ExxonMobil repeatedly broke the record for highest quarterly and annual net profit for a U.S. company, with highs of $11.66 billion and $45 billion in 2008.
"ExxonMobil's interests were global, not national."
At an industry meeting in Washington in the early 2000s, an executive asked ExxonMobil chairman Lee Raymond about building more refineries in inside the U.S. — the corporation operated and licensed more gas stations overseas despite being headquartered in Irving, Texas — to help protect the country against gasoline shortages.
Raymond replied, "Why would I want to do that? ... I'm not a U.S. company and I don't make decisions based on what's good for the U.S."
Based on Private Empire: ExxonMobil and American Power
Raymond and Vice President Dick Cheney were friends
In the 1990s their families had lived near one another near Dallas, and they had hunted quail together.
As "compatible personalities," Raymond and Cheney shared in "their ardent skepticism toward climate scientists and their opposition to all government regulation."
In 1997 Raymond flew to Beijing and gave a speech arguing that evidence of man-made climate change was illusory and the Clinton administration's negotiations of the Kyoto Protocol would lead to "slower economic growth, lost jobs, and a profound and unpleasant impact on the way we live."
Based on Private Empire: ExxonMobil and American Power
Exxon spent about $8 million to exploit the "uncertainties and argumentation" of the science of climate change
The company paid for well-funded research "carried out by highly competent individuals ... and influenced by the litigation strategies of aggressive lawyers," stating that the impact necessary for "victory" included:
• Media recognizing "uncertainties in climate science"
• Media coverage reflecting balance on climate change and recognizing "the validity of viewpoints challenging the current conventional wisdom"
• "Those promoting the Kyoto treaty on the basis of extant science [appearing] to be out of touch with reality.
Based on Private Empire: ExxonMobil and American Power
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