An Apology To Be Truly Sorry About

An Apology To Be Truly Sorry About

Investors Business Daily Editorial
June 18, 2010

Politics: Rep. Joe Barton says what everyone knows is true and his own party threatens to kick him out of his committee seat. We expected cynical political opportunism from Democrats, but not from Republican leaders.

Where are we as a society when the truth is treated as a something that can't be uttered in public?

Barton, the Texas Republican, apologized to BP CEO Tony Hayward, now relieved of his duties, during Thursday's House Energy and Commerce Committee hearing for what he characterized as a "shakedown" by the White House in forcing the company to create a $20 billion victims' compensation fund.

He also declared that he was "ashamed" of the White House's tactics, and called it "a tragedy of the first proportion that a private corporation can be subjected to what I would characterize as a shakedown."

"I do not want to live in a country where any time a citizen or a corporation does something that is legitimately wrong is subject to some sort of political pressure that is — again, in my words, amounts to a shakedown," he said.

Naturally, the Democrats went hard after Barton. And the media were happy to aid the cause. And just as naturally, other comments by Barton have not received as much attention. Without having watched the hearing or read the transcript, how many people know that Barton said:

"There is no question ... that BP made decisions that objective people think compromise safety. There is no question that BP is liable for the damages."

Or that he told Hayward "we want to hold (BP) responsible, do what we can to make the liable parties pay for the damages."

Just as every lawmaker should, Barton simply wants the government to follow our due process system, in which "we go through hearings, in some cases court cases, litigation, and determine what those damages are and when those damages should be paid." This, by the way, protects everyone's rights.

Despite these measured comments, the criticism has flowed faster than the Gulf spill. Among the critics is Vice President Joe Biden, who acted as if he were reluctant to condemn Barton before eagerly labeling the congressman's statement as "outrageous," "incredibly insensitive" and "incredibly out of touch."

The real outrage, though, should be reserved for Biden if he, as radio talk show host Neal Boortz reports, "is the one who leaned across the table during the White House meeting with BP and told them that if they didn't go along with the $20 billion fund to be administered by Obama's people, then Obama would 'do it to them.' "

Sounds like the man who should be issuing the apology is the vice president.

Instead, it was Barton who said he was sorry. And not at the insistence of Democrats but under pressure from his own party leadership. A senior aide told the New York Times that House Republican leader Rep. John Boehner of Ohio and GOP Whip Rep. Eric Cantor of Virginia told Barton to apologize immediately, "or he would lose his spot, immediately."

While Barton's first apology — the one he made to BP during the hearing — might not have been politically wise, given that it provided Democrats with the opportunity to link Republicans with the oil industry, his overall observations about BP, the spill and the government's disgraceful behavior nevertheless remain true.

Washington, from the White House to Congress, has gone beyond its enumerated powers to plunder and harass a private company.

The GOP leadership should be spending its energy on communicating this point, not devouring one of its own to minimize political damage. Rather than embarrassing their colleague, Boehner and Cantor could have pointed out that no one received more in BP-related campaign contributions during the last election cycle than a Democratic U.S. senator from Illinois who was running for president. His name: Barack Obama.

They could have, as well, called for a probe into the $20 billion victims compensation fund. The public has the right to know exactly how this agreement was reached.

Barton wasn't thinking politics when he spoke his mind at Thursday's hearing. He was thinking about how this government has overstepped its bounds and expressed his legitimate concern over what its recent behavior means to our future.

His GOP associates should have rallied in support rather than threatened him. Their behavior does not inspire confidence.