What the Koch brothers say online but won’t say under oath

Mike & Friends Blog

Robert Greenwald

Robert Greenwald is a producer, director, political activist, and Brave New Films founder and president.

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February 7th, 2012 5:35 PM

What the Koch brothers say online but won’t say under oath

Why will Charles and David Koch produce a video about their position on the Keystone XL oil pipeline and not testify before Congress about it? The Koch brothers have refused to answer questions about how they stand to profit from the Keystone XL pipeline, a 1,700-mile long boondoggle that would cut through six states and damage American homes and farmland

. The Koch brothers have an attack-dog website of their own, KochFacts.com, which they have used defensively and reflexively to attack me and others who've questioned or investigated the Koch brothers' vast $100 billion business. The Koch brothers refuse to testify in Congress about their interest in the pipeline, but they'll make a web video asserting their innocence. We took the Kochs' video retreat and added a few facts from the historical record.

Why won't the Koch brothers say in Congress, under oath, what their video says? Maybe the Koch brothers prefer to let their allies in Congress speak for them? House Energy and Commerce Committee chair Rep. Ed Whitfield got $15,000 in donations from Koch Industries. Is he doing the Koch brothers bidding? Whitfield is the tip of the iceberg. The Koch brothers and their employees were the single largest oil and gas donors to the committee with jurisdiction over the Keystone XL pipeline. They've contributed $279,500 to 22 of the 31 Republicans and $32,000 to five Democrats on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, according to the Los Angeles Times.

It makes sense then that Whitfield and his cohorts would shy away from biting the hand that feeds them. But the Koch brothers admit their business interests in Keystone. A Koch company website confesses to being among the "largest crude oil purchasers, shippers and exporters" at the pipeline's starting point in Northwest Canada. What's stopping the Koch brothers from testifying under oath in Congress? Apparently the Koch brothers are OK publishing statements on KochFacts.com that they won't repeat in Congress. Why won't they testify before Congress and put the issue to rest? Activism around the Keystone pipeline has put the Koch brothers on the defensive. We need to continue insisting the Koch brothers testify in Congress.

If they'll make a video about the Keystone XL pipeline, why can't they testify about their interest in it?

I invite you to join the conversation with me on Twitter and on our Koch Brothers Exposed page on Facebook.