“I’m Sorry”

Yesterday was quite the day for BP and its CEO Tony Hayward. The beleaguered Hayward spent hours in front of the House Energy and Commerce committee taking a grilling over the Deepwater Horizon spill that BP has yet to cap.

Not that he really said much. As a matter of fact, Hayward said very little, leaving the real fireworks to a couple members of Congress.

Two of those stand out, one far more than the other. The lesser of the two came from Republican Michael Burgess of Texas. Hayward cut him off at one point, saying, “with respect, sir, we drill hundreds of wells around the world.” Responded Burgess, “Yeah, that’s what’s scaring me right now.”

Burgess is not alone. However, one member of the committee appears to be on the other side, and was willing to go to great lengths to say so. Another Texas Congressman, Joe Barton (who has taken nearly $1.5 million in campaign contributions from oil and gas in his career), apologized to BP and Hayward. Watch this clip. All that was missing were the patented tears Barton is known for displaying on the House floor.

Joe Burton decided the American people needed to hear an apology given to the man who’s company caused this mess. I decided I felt apologetic as well, so here goes:

I’m sorry America. I am sorry that companies like BP take short cuts that put their operations in jeopardy and our environment at risk. I am sorry Big Oil spends millions every year to make sure they don’t get caught in the act and to ensure that if they do, they won’t be liable for it. I am sorry there are members of Congress who think Big Oil needs more money, bailouts, and less liability.

I am sorry Gulf Coast. I am sorry you will lose millions, if not billions in the immediate aftermath of the spill. I am sorry you will lose untold billions to the long term effects. I am sorry 11 of your sons are dead, lost to the negligence of their employer and poor oversight. I am sorry your livelihood is threatened by millions of gallons of oil spewing into the Gulf everyday, putting more lives and families at risk, along with some of your strongest businesses. I am sorry you are going through this again, especially given the ability to prevent these occurrences.

Which brings me to my real apology, on behalf of the US Senate. I am sorry to the current generation, already reeling from an economic downturn, for not taking action on legislation that would not only help our environment, but make us more secure and create millions of jobs. I am sorry to the future generations that will have to deal with the brutal effects of climate change because we don’t have the will to stop it from happening. I am sorry that other workers may die and environments will be polluted, because we would rather bicker. I am sorry that we could not stand up, like the House did almost a year ago, for the American people. Mostly I am sorry that we are ignoring the will of those who have elected us.

Polls show that 63 percent of you want us to pass a clean energy bill that would limit pollution and help investment in, and usage of, clean energy. A bill like that would create those jobs and help our security. Yet, here we sit, in the same state of inaction we have been in for months. For that, I apologize.

An apology won’t pass a bill. Action will. While there may be some members of Congress beholden to Big Oil, there are plenty who can step up and heed the call for comprehensive clean energy and climate legislation. Our national security demands it. Our environment demands it. Our economy demands it.

This country is in a place where a transition from the dirty energy policies of the past to a new, 21st-century clean energy economy is vital. And when it happens, there will be no need to apologize for it.