The No Fossil Fuel Money pledge has become a litmus test for climate and environmental activists lately. Since 2017, nearly 2,000 candidates for office at all levels of government have taken the pledge, committing "not to take contributions over $200 from oil, gas, and coal industry executives, lobbyists, and PACs and instead prioritize the health of our families, climate, and democracy over fossil fuel industry profits." While it is admirable to see so many candidates and elected officials taking this pledge, how many of them are actually honoring it?
Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA) has positioned himself as a climate hawk. He signed the No Fossil Fuel Money pledge late last year, and introduced the Green New Deal resolution in February alongside Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY). He is currently facing a primary challenge in his Senate re-election campaign from Rep. Joe Kennedy (D-MA), another pledge signer. Despite this, both Markey and Kennedy have received large campaign contributions this election cycle from several lobbyists in the oil and gas industry, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. For Markey, these include $6,850 from Chevron lobbyists -- namely Brian Arthur Pomper, Walker Roberts, Shannon Finley, Lauren Aronson, David Castagnetti, Steven Haro, and David R. Thomas -- and $1,000 from ExxonMobil lobbyist Lyndon K. Boozer. Meanwhile, Kennedy and his associated PAC have taken $2,000 from Chevron lobbyists -- Aronson, Castagnetti, Thomas, and Charles Wooters -- and $4,300 from ExxonMobil lobbyists -- Amy Tejral, Boozer, and Timothy Hannegan.
It's not just Markey and Kennedy who have accepted these types of campaign contributions despite their commitments not to; several other pledge signers have accepted them, as well, including Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI). Donations to Peters include $1,000 from Koch Industries lobbyist Kevin F. Kelly, $15,200 from Chevron lobbyists -- Pomper, Finley, John D. Raffaelli, Aronson, Castagnetti, Haro, Thomas, and Wooters -- $6,000 from ExxonMobil lobbyists -- Tejral, Hannegan, and Robert A. Russell -- and $5,000 from Shell lobbyists -- J. Michael Hogan, Brant Imperatore, and John Breaux. Additionally, several House members who signed the pledge have taken similar donations, such as Rep. Jim McGovern (D-MA), who received a $1,000 donation from Occidental Petroleum lobbyist Robert Hickmott. Even major presidential candidates have either broken or skirted around the pledge; Joe Biden took $2,800 from family members of Raffaelli, Pete Buttigieg received $500 from ExxonMobil lobbyist Mark Joseph Anderson, and Kelly donated $431 to Elizabeth Warren. Gov. Jay Inslee (D-WA), whose presidential campaign, which ended in August, focused mainly on climate change, also accepted a $260 donation from Shell lobbyist John P. Mulligan.
The message that these donations send is something that many Americans already knew about politicians: that they will say one thing to get elected, but do the opposite behind voters' backs. These politicians' donations from fossil fuel lobbyists go against the word they gave to the people they represent, or are seeking to represent. While they may campaign with strong pro-climate rhetoric, when push comes to shove, who will they listen to: those who demand change, or the lobbyists who push to maintain the status quo and have given to their campaigns?
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