Salazar’s Message to Interior Employees Says Much
by Bob McCartyIn an e-mail message to employees two weeks after an explosion rocked BP’s Deepwater Horizon drilling rig in the Gulf of Mexico, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar continued parroting the Obama Administration lines about “being on the job from Day One” and about BP being responsible.
“From day one, we have been anticipating and preparing for the worst case scenario,” Secretary Salazar writes in the e-mail’s opening paragraph. “Thirteen days into this event, the situation is still dangerous.”
I find it telling that the action words in Secretary Salazar’s message are “anticipating and preparing” instead of acting, fixing, resolving or, if he had wanted to be honest — hoping.
In the fourth paragraph, he writes, “BP has a massive oil spill for which they are responsible,” —–even though no official investigation report has reached that conclusion.
Below, I share the full text of the message:
From: Secretary_of_the_Interior@ios.doi.gov [mailto:Secretary_of_the_Interior@ios.doi.gov]
Sent: Tuesday, May 04, 2010 2:28 PM
Subject: Secretary’s Priority Message – Deepwater Horizon Update
( NOTE TO SUPERVISORS: Please ensure that all employees without e-mail access receive a paper copy of this distribution.)
Dear Team,
As you know, at approximately 10:00 p.m. on April 20, 2010, a devastating explosion occurred on the BP Deepwater Horizon offshore facility, claiming the lives of 11 people. From day one, we have been anticipating and preparing for the worst case scenario. Thirteen days into this event, the situation is still dangerous.
Secretary Napolitano has designated the Deepwater Horizon explosion and spill as an “event of national significance.” I appreciate her steadfast leadership in the response to this emergency. In the days and weeks ahead, I ask you all to join with me in bringing the resources and expertise of this Department to the people and landscapes of the Gulf as they brace for the difficult times ahead.
I want to thank Deputy Secretary David J. Hayes for leading Interior’s response effort. David was the first senior Administration official on the ground, arriving in New Orleans the morning after the explosion. I also thank all of you – from MMS to the Fish and Wildlife Service, from the National Park Service to PMB and the USGS – for the long hours you are putting in to helping deal with this emergency.
BP has a massive oil spill for which they are responsible. The oil spill threatens communities, wildlife, and natural resources around the Gulf of Mexico. Our focus remains on overseeing BP’s efforts to secure their wellhead that is spilling oil, and minimizing the damage.
Last week at BP’s command center, I pressed the engineers to work harder, faster, and smarter to get the job done. I have asked other companies to bring their expertise, resources, and ideas to the effort as well. And under President Obama’s direction, every resource within the Federal Government is being made available. We cannot rest until BP permanently seals the wellhead, and until they clean up every drop of oil.
The weather this past weekend presented a challenge, but the strong interagency effort – and our coordination with local and state partners – means we have plans in place, resources deployed, and the people we need to fight the spill.
I have ordered immediate inspections of all deepwater operations in the Gulf of Mexico. We have issued a safety notice to all operators, reminding them of their responsibilities to follow our regulations and to conduct full and thorough tests of their equipment.
Last week I signed a Secretarial Order establishing the Outer Continental Shelf Safety Oversight Board within the Department of the Interior. Assistant Secretary for Land and Minerals Management Wilma Lewis – a former U.S. Attorney and former Interior Inspector General – will lead the Safety Oversight Board. She will be joined by Interior’s Deputy Inspector General Mary Kendall, and Assistant Secretary for Policy, Management and Budget Rhea Suh.
They will provide recommendations for steps we can take to strengthen OCS safety and to improve overall management, regulation, and oversight of OCS operations.
They will look at all options. I will report to President Obama within 30 days on what, if any, immediate additional precautions and technologies should be required. Another important function of the Safety Oversight Board will be to provide oversight and support to MMS as they conduct their joint investigation of the incident with the U.S. Coast Guard.
I am confident we will get to the bottom of what happened. Those responsible will be held accountable. And the lessons we learn will help guide us as we responsibly, and safely, develop our Nation’s energy resources.
Sincerely,
Ken Salazar /s/
EDITOR’S NOTE: A friend of mine who works in the Interior Department shared this message with me.
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83 Comments
helluva job salzie!
Correct me if I am wrong but wasn't POS Interior Sec. rafting down the Colorado at the time?
Note to self: Anytime I hear the name of a bill being proposed by this congress, assume its intent to be the opposite of its name. Same goes for statements from this administration,,simply substitue the antonym in each case to get an accurate read.
“From day one, we have been anticipating and preparing for the worst case scenario,” Secretary Salazar writes in the e-mail’s opening paragraph. “Thirteen days into this event, the situation is still dangerous.”
In the fourth paragraph, he writes, “BP has a massive oil spill for which they are responsible,”
Both statements are facts.
God you people are stupid.
Day one is a Joke. Lies, and more lies, that is all we the people OF THIS GREAT COUNTRY have been getting from this White House from DAY ONE.
Restore the Republic,
God Bless America
Lie number one: “From day one, we have been anticipating and preparing for the worst case scenario,”
Lie number two: ANON's mom loves him
Lie number three: His mom had to tie a porkchop around his neck to get the dog to play with him, it was a t-bone
The government is not responsible for actually doing anything unless the Republicans are running things. When the Dems are in charge, if they do anything, they are benevolent and if they don't they can pass new, power-grabbing laws to "make sure it never happens again".
The Obama blame game!!! Way to go Salazar lets focus more on blame than getting a hold on this spill and control the damage.
"I am confident we will get to the bottom of what happened. Those responsible will be held accountable. And the lessons we learn will help guide us as we responsibly, and safely, develop our Nation’s energy resources."
You are confident you will get to the bottom? How about being confident about the clean up?
Come NOV, We will remember!!!
Taxed
Enough
Already
and if they had followed the plan developed in 1994, it wouldn't be dangerous.
anon people are so stupid.
Both statements are facts.
Atleast he did not blame Bush. Yet…
Global warming is a proven fraud, so an oil spill is the next best thing.
The system worked once again.
And to top everything, the stock market has plunged 466 points, Wall Street is panicking while Soros-Obama company is smiling about their NWO agenda. I wonder how much the FED is playing with our money today and funneling funds?
me thinks they are all confused from bo-bo on down i believe they mean to say from MAY ONE several days after the sh*t hit the fan did they decide to do anything which as we can see is not much
I think it was his chief of staff, who would have been responsible to implement the emergency plan they did not have the fire lighting booms boats for. Not a single 1 purchased by the Fed Gov't.
Pretend for a minute how this would have been reported if Bush were president. I wrote a fake news article on my blog to that effect: http://www.bestofbothblogs.blogspot.com
God caused it – Governor Perry said so and that should be good enough for you fools. The fact is that said they are responsible for the spill it came right out of the mouth of their chief executive – or don't read or listen (to anything but right wing trash talk).
More BS from our dear firend "and on, and on, and on again ANON"
he was a bumass in colorado, now a dumass in dc………at least we got rid of him……..only thing he has going for him is his last name
will pay $$$$$ for pictures of bo when he use to smoke crack………………………………….. will not pay for pics of him smoking diick, he never quit
It's all going according to plan. That vulture, Soros is feeding on the carcas of the Greek economy. Soon, it'll be our turn.
what Newt said was absolutely absurd was that
just like Bush did not sabotage the levies,..
Obama did not sabotage the well
you are one mixed up lad there anon,………but
I still think you are amusing.
it is the disparity and hypocrisy on the part he media as to how they
are treating Obama's tardy reaction compared to Bush's tardy reaction
to their respective \”Katrinas\”.
Now aren't you glad,………I care about you.
what Newt said was absolutely absurd was that
just like Bush did not sabotage the levies,..
Obama did not sabotage the well
you are one mixed up lad there anon,………but
I still think you are amusing.
it is the disparity and hypocrisy on the part he media as to how they
are treating Obama's tardy reaction compared to Bush's tardy reaction
to their respective \”Katrinas\”.
Now aren't you glad,………I care about you.
this upcoming game might be remarkable
We're going to find out the rig was sabotaged and this is no accident at all. Watch and see if I'm right. The timing is all too convenient.
To re-distribute the wealth my friend. That is the only reason. Obama could not get the money to double welfare payout but could increase hiring in major cities.
Your reading comprehension skills are lacking. I never said BP didn't cause it, but we don't know for sure that they did and won't until the investigation concludes. An interview with one of the rig workers indicated that it might have been an unusually large gas pocket under unusually high pressure that caused the blow out.
It may well have been human or equipment negligence that were well under BP's ability to control that caused this, but it might also have been an accident beyond any human agency.
BP has accepted financial responsibility for the clean up, but that doesn't mean they are to blame for what caused the accident itself.
They can't actually be spending our money because they've already done that.
The first statement is total and complete BULLSHIT. DOI's conduct here makes FEMA's Katrina fuck-up look omnicompetent.
Salazar is all hat and no cows! This is one inarticulate cowboy who is as dumb as his inability to speak clearly and articulate suggests.
"Last week at BP’s command center, I pressed the engineers to work harder, faster, and smarter to get the job done."
Funny, his hair doesn't LOOK all that pointy…
Our job is basically to keep the boot on the neck of British Petroleum," Salazar said, who often sports a Stetson and who four months ago stirred the ire of the oil business by saying unlike under his predecessors in the George W. Bush administration, oil companies would no longer be treated like "kings of the world." When he was a senator, he had to apologize after calling Christian conservative leader James Dobson "the antichrist of the world."
Unfortunately some salient points will all be lost in the reporting.
1. Why was the Govt. so unprepared for this? Aside from basic incompetence, a reason could be that spills like this have become extremely rare. Years of pumping xxx million gallons on now one major spill. I can't recall a major spill since Santa Cruz, myself. Anyone know when the last platform (not tanker) spill was in coastal US?
2. This spill might not have happened if the Obama administration had not exempted BP from key regulations.
Drill, Baby, Drill, but beef up the emergency response resources (or outsource them to the Petroleum companies) and enforce all prudent safety requirements – no matter how much they give you in campaign contributions.
God, you Regressives are jerkoffs.
Never ascribe to conspiracy what can be ascribed to incompetence. Not that the Obami won't take full advantage of the crisis.
BP didn't cause it – it was being drilled and the rig was operated by Transocean Ltd. BP contracted with Transocean to drill the well. This was in Tueday's paper – where have you been. There also has been speculation that Haliburton (Cheney's old outfit) whose responsibility it was to cement the deepwater drilling hole where the oil is coming out of. About a year ago there was a major blowout in the Timor sea and Halliburton has been accused of a poor cement job there.
But it is not the job of US government, and if they got in the way you'd be criticizing that even more vociferously.
Stopping the leak is a different matter from containing the spill. The governments inability to act promptly has shortened the time needed to stop the leak before environmental damage is done.
The stopping of a leak will vary from incident to incident so there is no surefire way to stop it but the time needed to get plans made and equipment in place could have been greatly lengthened if the government followed their own recommendations and thus making this a much smaller problem than it has turned into.
Also, if the government would have followed their own guidelines on preventive measures, i.e. proper inspections, this MIGHT have been avoided.
This is a government failure as much as anybody else involved.
It's okay, I've got ANON's vote canceled out on the next election. Unless, he's from Chicago or Ohio, and votes multiple times.. may need some help here after all…
The plan is to contain while you work on control. Since none of the proper pieces of the plan were in place to attempt containment, we have two problems the leak and the environmental impact of the spill.
Personally, I'd much rather we had just the leak to worry about stopping because we had the spill more or less contained. Now, we're going to wind up spending a ton more on clean up than we needed to.
Correct me if I am wrong but wasn't POS Interior Sec. rafting down the Colorado at the time?
Note to self: Anytime I hear the name of a bill being proposed by this congress, assume its intent to be the opposite of its name. Same goes for statements from this administration,,simply substitue the antonym in each case to get an accurate read.
God you are stupid
Ken Salazar, who was senator of CO(Dumba**) was ringing a small bell and clapping everytime one of our soldiers died. There's no better place for him than Hell.
I feel better " Safety Notices" have been issued…
The government is not responsible for actually doing anything unless the Republicans are running things. When the Dems are in charge, if they do anything, they are benevolent and if they don't they can pass new, power-grabbing laws to "make sure it never happens again".
Obama wants the oil to spill just like they're not happy that the Earth is not really warming up and doomsday was called off.
God you're stupid.
'I am confident we will get to the bottom of what happened. Those responsible will be held accountable. '
Didn't he already say BP was responsible?
Same message… Just like Bush is responsible for everything too. Blame anyone else, don't take responsibility for anything…
"……..Both statements are facts…."
Thank God,……………you pointed that out there anon,……..for a while there,………..
I was afraid we were going to have to.,………. KATRINA your boy.
Re: Lie number four
Perhaps he has that all important parapsychology degree.
You guys better get your story straight. Even your right wing heroes see the absurdity of your claim.
"Similar to Rove, other conservatives are trying pin blame on the administration or to make the spill response “Obama’s Katrina.” “I think the parallels to Katrina are very real,” Newt Gingrich said yesterday. Today, MSNBC host and former GOP congressman Joe Scarborough called such a comparison “absolutely obscene,” adding that “anybody that draws that analogy is an idiot.”
Many on the right aren’t buying the delayed response argument either. Charles Krauthammer, the Weekly Standard’s Steve Hayes, and even Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R-MN) have all noted that the Obama administration responded appropriately to the Gulf oil spill. “What could [Obama] have done? … This is insane,” Fox News’ Bill O’Reilly said of the administration’s critics."
God you people are stupid.
You forgot the statement of fact that goes with statement #2:
The Dept. of the Interior gave BP a pass when it came to inspections.
In other words, the so called watchdogs let BP feed them a great big juicy steak which they ate while BP went on about its business.
As to whether or not BP is responsible or has simply accepted responsibility, the jury remains out until we know what happened. I've heard reports that indicate it could have been caused by a freak natural event in the well.
“From day one, we have been anticipating and preparing for the worst case scenario,”
-But they have not been preparing for it. The government has not followed its own recommendations on clean-up equipment needed by not purchasing and maintaining it. They have given BP and Transocean a pass on inspection though inspections were incomplete.
“BP has a massive oil spill for which they are responsible,”
-Transocean is the drilling company who owns the Deep Horizon, not BP. BP is the company that is purchasing the oil from Transocean from processing and refinement
In other words, your "FACTS" are wrong, again.
Again:
1) The government response teams (Coast Guard, EPA etc.) actually have the equipment needed for such an incident as required by their own mandates.
2) Actually doing full inspections not giving it a pass as is required
3)Sending technicians to the scene not lawyers.
That or any one of other Liberal Arts degrees like: Cutural Sensitivity in the Age of Obama (aka – how to perpetuate class warfare in a new and fundementally changed Amerika)
God caused it – Governor Perry said so and that should be good enough for you fools. The fact is that said they are responsible for the spill it came right out of the mouth of their chief executive – or don't read or listen (to anything but right wing trash talk).
I don't know copperpeony, but I'm afraid we'll wake up to a whole new world tomorrow morning.
I'll be watching Cramer, Kudlow, Cavuto, et al the rest of the day.
Unfortunately this is in no way surprising. What on earth do all these public employees (union) do with their time and why are we paying them?
And just what equipment is really required to fix this??? List it – I challenge you. Obviously even BP who is in the business and has been in the business for more years than your IQ level is devising ways as they situation develops. But YOU know that the government HAS ALL the equipment and expertise needed.
From DAY ONE this administration has lied through thier teeth in every area they have a hand in. The most despicable,corrupt and divisive administration in history hands down.
Lessee, FIRE BOOMS that have been proven to be able to burn off up to 1800/gph. In 1994, a federal response plan for something like this spill required the government to have these on hand.
How many did the government have? 0
They had to call various companies and countries to beg for them, and then they had to be shipped in.
That's on piece of equipment right there that should have been readily available by mandate, but it wasn't. Just like the levees in NO were known to be inadequate for years and no one fixed them.
We're going to find out the rig was sabotaged and this is no accident at all. Watch and see if I'm right. The timing is all too convenient.
i guess it's time to stop drilling and go to rehab for our addiction to oil.
What was needed nearly 2weeks ago:
1) The recommended number and proper types of booms
2) The recommended amount of pseudomonas putida
3) Sending properly trained personal, not lawyers and politicians.
Yes, I left off a lot.
My specialty was Rescue so, Yes I do know a thing or two about HAZMAT since I have been certified Tech since 1988, as well as, being on one of the HAZMAT response teams for Lake Michigan, BP Refinery-Whiting, ISPAT-Inland Steel and U.S. Steel-Gary.
"Last week at BP’s command center, I pressed the engineers to work harder, faster, and smarter to get the job done."
Funny, his hair doesn't LOOK all that pointy…
Bush should get some blame – also possibly others before him. Why didn't we have enough booms? Why didn't we act faster. We have excellent response plans, but not enough resources or preparedness in place and this state of affairs started long befoe Obama.
That said, it was Obama – not Bush – that allowed BP to skip regulatory requirements. One reason for our unpreparedness is that leaks like this have become so rare. This one might not have happened if the rules were enforced on BP from the start.
God, you Regressives are douchebags.
And how does that stop the leak????
True, but given the way things tend to take place in such a timely manner so a "crisis will not go to waste" indicates that disregarding the possibility out of hand is perhaps a foolish idea.
I don't put anything past the Left. Anything.
True, but given the way things tend to take place in such a timely manner so a "crisis will not go to waste" indicates that disregarding the possibility out of hand is perhaps a foolish idea.
I don't put anything past the Left. Anything.
Carol Browner, Obama White House climate czar, "put nothing in writing, ever" … Carol Browner, former Clinton administration EPA head and current Obama White House climate czar, instructed auto industry execs "to put nothing in writing, ever" regarding secret negotiations she orchestrated regarding a deal to increase federal Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards. Rep. James Sensenbrenner, R-WI, is demanding a congressional investigation of Browner's conduct in the CAFE talks, saying in a letter to Rep. Henry Waxman, D-CA, that Browner "intended to leave little or no documentation of the deliberations that lead to stringent new CAFE standards."
Salazar is in trouble if the drilling engineers put nothing in writing evah.
Obama is surrounded by crooks and tax cheats. They know how to commit crime and not leave a trail.
BP didn't cause it – it was being drilled and the rig was operated by Transocean Ltd. BP contracted with Transocean to drill the well. This was in Tueday's paper – where have you been. There also has been speculation that Haliburton (Cheney's old outfit) whose responsibility it was to cement the deepwater drilling hole where the oil is coming out of. About a year ago there was a major blowout in the Timor sea and Halliburton has been accused of a poor cement job there.
But it is not the job of US government, and if they got in the way you'd be criticizing that even more vociferously.
Ah, the old blame Haliburton thing. Again, until we get the results of the investigation. No one really knows.
And if it's not the job of the US government, then why is there a federal plan to contain oil spills. Because, as you say, that's none of their business.
I would bet my life that Soros-Ayers-Geithner-Holder-obama Crime Inc. shorted out a lot of stocks and made millions on this downward spiral.
Salazar and your band Quibblers , Should have BURNED , on Day ""1"" , Fool !
Lets all go rafting!
Well remember the Clowns comments….."Never let a serious crisis go to waste"
Does anyone expect anything different from a hand picked Obama lackey?
Look at this guys eyes. He is concerned about no one but himself. The mark of a coward.
If I could caption that picture I would say, "please can I just take my nap now?"
I got to the second paragraph of the article and started singing the song Verb! from the old Schoolhouse Rock video.
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So, like "chocolate city" Nagin, this is a Fed disaster recovery plan failure; apparently the DR plan was documented (boom recommendations, etc.) and in-place, but the current administration incompetents did not not implement the plan…in light of this failure, it makes this EXACTLY the Obamalinsky administration's "Katrina" – the parallels are unmistakable – regardless how the dumb-stream media and it's progressive acolytes attempt to spin this…just like kindergartners, blame everyone else for your own transgressions – typical, absolutely typical.
Yep – we would have to go all the way back to the Clintonista regime to start pointing fingers…by why bring that up? MSM will ignore this "tiny" morsel of fact to the bitter end.
Global warming is not a proven fraud. You don't know what you're talking about.
CHENEY is the one whose hands are all over this mess. Look it up.
The oil industry has NEVER obeyed regulatory requirements. That just pay penny-ante fines and keep right on doing whatever they want.
You are an idiot. NOTHING in our history surpasses the corruption of Bush/Cheney/Rove.
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