When Troubled Topper$ Topple
by pessimist
George W. Bu$h is in deep trouble - and he knows it.
Bush to Tell Saudis Oil Prices Will Damage Markets
President Bush on Monday said he would tell Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah that high oil prices will damage markets and will discuss the kingdom's oil production capacity with the Saudi leader. "The crown prince understands that it is very important to make sure that prices are reasonable. High oil prices will damage markets. He knows that," Bush told reporters before welcoming Abdullah at his Texas ranch.
It wasn't just Owwer Leedur having an intimate tete-a-tete, C-Average Sovereign to Crown Prince - the full-court press was on:
VP Cheney Meets with Saudi Leader in Dallas
Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah met on Sunday with Vice President Dick Cheney, one day before the kingdom's leader was scheduled to talk with President Bush about record high oil prices and other issues. The White House declined to comment on Cheney's meeting with the crown prince. Saudi officials were also unwilling to say what the men discussed.
We progressives have had some issues with the only viable opposition political party and their lack of opposition lately, but at least one member of the Democratic Party remembers what an opposition party is for:
Democrats Hit Bush on Gas Prices, Energy Plan
U.S. Rep. Ed Markey of Massachusetts blamed the Bush administration's "failed energy policy" for the high cost of oil and called for a plan that focused on renewable technologies, energy efficiency and conservation rather than an expansion of oil and gas drilling in the United States. Markey said in the Democratic radio address:
It would be one thing if this favor-asking were for the good of the nation, but it is clear that Bu$hCo is in the deep end of the defecation device, and the favor-fawning is for the political benefit of the (mis)Administration.
World Oil Investors Watching US-Saudi Meeting
World oil prices rose Monday as investors waited for results from a meeting between President Bush and Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah in Texas about oil supplies, prices and other issues.
They should find much to assuage their curiosities. After all, in a demonstration of just how important the Saudi Crown Prince considers the request for assistance from the Commander-in-Chief of the Most Powerful Military Corporate Campaign Funds Can Build From Taxes Paid By Honest And Hardworking Americans, Abdullah and his small entourage were nearly a half-hour late.
All the world is ROFLTAO.
Dawn Of The Political Dead
It isn't just Rep. Markey that has remembered that he has a voice and an obligation to use it:
Bush, Saudi crown prince to discuss oil, terrorism
Some opposition Democrats have seized on the president's pledge, in the 2000 White House race, to "jawbone" members of the OPEC oil cartel."Five years later, and Americans suffering under record-high gas prices are still waiting to see the president keep his promise to jawbone OPEC," said Senator John Kerry, Bush's rival in the 2004 presidential race. "There's no denying that getting the Saudis to open the spigot could make a difference tomorrow," he said through a spokesman, David Wade.
Saudi Oil Minister Ali al-Nuaimi said Thursday in Paris that the kingdom was meeting oil demand, declaring: "We try to respond to our customers. We have not turned down a customer who says, 'I want additional oil.'"
And the Saudis are delivering:
Saudi Arabia is the biggest oil producer within the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, which has struggled to keep world oil markets balanced as China and India consume growing amounts of energy. Industry sources have said Saudi Arabia will boost supplies to major international oil companies and some Asian customers by 500,000 barrels per day (bpd) next month, putting it near production of 10 million bpd for the first time since 1980.
President Bush recently told CNBC he planned to ask the Saudi crown prince for a clear answer about the size of the kingdom's spare oil production capacity. Last week, Naimi told an oil conference that Saudi Arabia would try to keep a spare supply capacity of at least 1.5 million bpd. The kingdom will increase its capacity to 12.5 million bpd by early 2009, and could boost it to 15 million bpd if needed, he said.
So if the Saudis are already pumping to please, just what is this meeting at the Petroleum 'Prarie Chapel' all about?
Bush vows to press Saudis for more oil
With his Social Security overhaul plan winning few converts, Bush may find that promoting his energy agenda has a more immediate political payoff for jittery Republicans.Soaring oil and gasoline prices are beginning to take a toll on U.S. economic growth and on Bush's approval ratings. Robert Ebel, an energy analyst at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said Bush is responding politically to consumer concerns that "gasoline prices are high, we haven't yet entered the summer driving season, and what is the president going to do about it?"
Jerry Taylor, an energy analyst at the Cato Institute, a Washington-based think tank that advocates less government regulation, said the idea that "jawboning OPEC or arranging for nice relations with OPEC will somehow get us more oil is utter illusion. The Saudis will produce as much oil as they think is necessary to maximize revenue. Period," Taylor said.
Crude oil prices have risen 40 percent in the past year. China's rising thirst for oil, not supply shortages, is the main factor driving up global oil prices.
Hoist Upon His Own Petard
But finding ways to curb them poses a particular dilemma for Bush -- complicated by his own actions.
The president recently ruled out releasing oil from the nation's emergency stockpile, saying he would only tap the 700 million barrel reserve in a national crisis. Bush criticized President Clinton for tapping into the reserve in 2000, suggesting it was a political gesture to help Vice President Al Gore, then Bush's Democratic rival for the White House.
So what avenue of action remains uncongested for Owwer C-Average Sovereign to bumble about in search of a solution to a problem he made much worse through his quest to follow the insane PNAC Petroleum Pirate Posse plans for world oil-production
domination?
How about pleading for sympathy at the Topper$ are in danger of having to try to find jobs in his 'booming' economy?
Bush, Abd Allah to discuss oil prices
President George W Bush has said he is concerned about near-record oil and petrol prices and that he pressed the Saudi crown prince on how much the kingdom could increase production. "The crown prince understands that it is very important ... (to) make sure that the price is reasonable. A high oil price will damage markets, and he knows that," Bush said welcoming Crown Prince Abd Allah bin Abd al-Aziz Al Saud at his ranch in Crawford, Texas, on Monday.
But the Saudis know markets better than King George gives them credit for! They certainly understand that when one wants something, one must give in return something of equal - or much greater - value:
The Saudis are hoping for an agreement that would clear the way for the kingdom to join the World Trade Organisation and officials have been trying to iron out the last sticking points so it can be announced at the Bush-Abd Allah meeting.
[The 'discussions' have apparently been successful: Saudi Arabia Close to Deal on WTO Entry-Official
Saudi Arabia is "very close" to reaching an agreement with the United States on the kingdom's entry into the World Trade Organization, a senior Saudi official said Monday. Adel al-Jubeir, a Saudi foreign affairs adviser, told reporters that there were only a few technical matters that still needed to be worked out and he expected they would be resolved soon. Jubeir was part of the Saudi delegation in Texas for Crown Prince Abdullah's visit to President Bush's ranch. U.S. and Saudi trade negotiators were working around the clock to try to finalize a bilateral deal on the terms of Riyadh's entry into the WTO.]
George is already asking the Saudis for the moon by requesting increased oil production. He will thus have nothing left to offer his domestic backers, whose early Christmas list includes the following items:
The US wants barriers eased to allow more US corporate participation in the Saudi insurance, financial services and telecommunications markets.
Quit bluffing, George. Your 'Uncle' Bandar's associates are holding all of the face cards. Your associates will get lip service from you - just like the rest of the nation has been getting for years. It's so clear that even 17-year-old high school students can figure this out:
Why Does George Keep Helping Those Who Hurt Americans?
"The rest of America calls you the elite... I call you my base."
~ George W. Bush
An interesting comment. Made in the middle of campaign season, yes, but nonetheless, Bush said it. The worst part is, it does paint an accurate reflection of Bush's supporters. Big Business. Big Tobacco. The worst parts of American society, yet there Bush is, taking contribution after contribution from them, and not giving a single thought to what their agenda could do to America.So why does Bush help those who hurt us? Well, for those of you who are reading this and saying "HE DOESN'T," let me correct you: Yes, in fact, he does. I'll tell you why: Money. Money is driving the Bush Administration. Money is, under this Administration and the foreign policy - and domestic policy, for that matter - moving mountains and shaking the world.
Consider: American taxpayers pay Bush $400,000 a year to be President.
In a family that is driven by materialistic urges and the constant acquisition of wealth, whose needs do you think they will value higher - the ones paying them 400,000 a year for a maximum of 8 years, or the ones paying their family 1.4 billion over 20+?Also consider Bush's remark about fragile ties with Saudi Arabia.
So what we have here is not the meeting of heads of state, but the fawning obeissance of a minion to his superior.
It's a wonder that Georgie wasn't summoned to Riyadh - but then, as an avowed Christian, he's apostate - an infidel:
Saudi Arabia's Religious Tyranny
The religious tyranny in Saudi Arabia is not just Saudis' business. Before boarding his flight to Crawford to meet with President Bush Monday, Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Abdullah presided over the arrest of 40 Pakistani Christians on Friday. Their crime?
That should play well in the Red States!
As the State Department has determined, there is no religious freedom in Saudi Arabia and everyone there, Muslim or not, must obey the rules of the extreme sharia of the kingdom's established religion, the Wahhabi interpretation of Islam.Saudi Arabia's nationals, by law Muslim, find that a broad range of their freedoms are limited because of the state's monopoly on religious expresssion. For example, Muslims who follow the Sufi and Shiite traditions are viewed as heretical dissidents and viciously condemned and discriminated against by the state. Regarding those who convert out of Islam, the Saudi ministry of Islamic affairs explicitly asserts in publications Freedom House has acquired, they "should be killed." Muslims who object to even particular tenets of Wahhabism, such as advocates of greater religious tolerance, also are viewed as the "other" and condemned as "infidels." Under Saudi law, such "blasphemers" and "apostates" from Islam can be sentenced to death.
Political reformers, too, are crushed on religious grounds. Three Saudi professors have now languished for over a year in prison after proposing that the country adopt a written constitution. Among other charges, their terminology was denounced as un-Islamic or "Western." State publications condemn democracy itself as un-Islamic. They instill contempt for America because the United States is ruled by "infidel" legislated law, rather than Wahhabi-style Islamic law.
But since King George has such a great rapport with the world's leaders, he should get some kind of a possitive response from Prince Abdullah, right?
Maybe not:
Crucial bridge between tradition and modernity
Crown Prince Abdullah of Saudi Arabia remains under pressure from Mr Bush to accelerate the reform of his fiercely conservative kingdom. The prince must juggle the conflicting desires in Saudi society for modernity and tradition. This requires energy, vision and strong leadership - a tough combination for a man reaching his 80s. Fortunately for him,oil prices remain high.Born in the early 1920s, he is one of the 37 sons of Ibn Saud, the founding father of Saudi Arabia. Of them all, he is said to have preserved a strong attachment to his Bedouin roots. At the same time he is untainted by the excesses of some of his fellow al-Sauds and has a reputation for deep personal piety. In his foreign policy, he has proved less US-centric than King Fahd, criticising US policy in Iraq and taking George W. Bush to task for his support of Israel.
But in other respects, says a prominent Saudi reformer, he has proved weak. He is elderly and he is not king. In practice, this has meant his hands are tied by powerful half-brothers such as Nayif, the interior minister, and Sultan, the defence minister. Nor is it certain that he favours more radical reforms.
He met a group of reformers at the beginning of 2003 who presented him with a petition calling for elections, a free press and an independent judiciary. He told them he shared their aims. A year later a dozen were arrested. Three are still in jail.
And in an episode that should seem very familiar to those who followed the Florida and Ohio and Iraq electoral shenanigans, check out the way the Saudi 'elections' were run:
Islamists Dominate Saudi Arabia Elections
Candidates backed by conservative clerics dominated the final stage of Saudi Arabia's landmark municipal elections, according to results announced Saturday.In the kingdom's commercial capital of Jiddah, the seven winning candidates were those whose names appeared on what was dubbed the "golden list" - the picks of fundamentalist clerics.
Five of the six winners in Buraydah, capital of ultraconservative Qassem province, also received a clerical nod, and the holy city of Medina also saw Islamist candidates finishing well. In Buraydah, a city known as a hotbed for Islamic militancy, only one of the six winning council members was not among the clerics' recommendations - that was a businessman with strong tribal backing. Many Islamists also won seats in municipal council polling elsewhere in February and March.
The Saudi monarchy, a longtime ally of Washington, has been under U.S. pressure to make some democratic reforms. But the limited experiment in democracy - only men could vote and run for seats on the half-appointed councils - also appeared to be an attempt to deflate the militant Islamic movement by bringing some Islamists into the system.
The government can balance the makeup of the councils by naming liberals to the portion of seats reserved for government appointees.
Sure - THAT'S gonna happen!
Nabil Qamlu, a liberal lawyer who lost to one of Jiddah's "golden" candidates, accused the powerful clergy of interfering in the elections. Some losing candidates were expected to lodge complaints with the election commission, which largely ignored such complaints made before the vote."This is neither democracy nor equal opportunity," Qamlu said. "Who has given them such power to determine whom should the electorate choose.
It might have worked for Al Gore! But I digress.
So let's take George's 'charm' factor at face value. What are the odds that he could pull this off using this devious device?
Slim, Pickens!
Bush faces tense talks with Saudis
Bush remains under pressure from conservatives in his own party and some Democrats to take a hard line with the Saudis when it comes to terrorism and Israel, they said, while the Saudis remain resentful that they do not get more recognition for what they see as intensive efforts to be helpful and responsive to the United States.American officials give the Saudis some credit for stepping up their efforts to combat terrorism within their borders and stop the flow of money from Saudis to terrorist groups. They said Saudi Arabia was also helpful in recent months in pressuring Syria to begin withdrawing from Lebanon.
At the same time, the Saudis have been heartened by Bush's stepped-up involvement in seeking peace between the Palestinians and Israelis, analysts said. And now Bush will be seeking help from the Saudis to help bring down crude oil and gasoline prices, an issue that is taking a toll both on the economy and Bush's approval ratings. Their meeting is unlikely to result in any big breakthroughs. The Saudis have less ability to drive down global oil prices than at many times in the past, because they are already pumping closer to their maximum sustainable capacity than during past price spikes.
As demand and production have increased, the Saudis have been left with less spare production capacity to use to smooth out price spikes. Three years ago it was about three million barrels a day, according to Saudi Aramco. Today "the cushion is very, very small," about 1.2 million barrels, according to Nawaf Obaid, an oil and security consultant. The drop in Saudi spare capacity is a key reason why the Saudis are less able to influence the price of oil today, according to Jordan and Obaid.
In relations between the United States and Saudi Arabia, much rides on personal relationships because the diplomacy tends to be conducted at the highest levels, often between the crown prince and the Saudi ambassador to the United States, Prince Bandar, and Bush and his top aides.
Vice President Dick Cheney was to meet on Sunday in Dallas with the crown prince. Cheney will be at the Bush ranch on Monday, as will Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Fran Townsend, the White House's homeland security adviser, who has often been an envoy to the Saudis on terrorism and security issues.Analysts said the Saudis remain suspicious about Bush's intentions when it comes to a final agreement between the Israelis and Palestinians. They said the Saudis are concerned about a number of developments in the Middle East, including the growing Shiite influence in the region, especially in Iraq, where the continued instability is a worry to the Saudis. Saudi Arabia's religious establishment is dominated by the Wahhabi branch of Sunni Islam.
Members of both parties in Congress are pressing Bush to do more to compel the Saudi leadership to crack down on clerics who are inciting anti-American, anti-Western feeling within Saudi Arabia, and to take more concrete steps to ensure that money given to charity in Saudi Arabia is not making its way to terrorist groups.
Because the Saudis seek WTO membership, they will attempt to provide Bu$hCo with some sort of tangible evidence of cooperating with the 'War on Terra'. But the path they choose if fraught with dangers - and not just for the Saudis:
Dangerous games the Saudis play
Crown Prince Abdullah was about to visit President George W Bush at his ranch in Texas. On this occasion, the Saudi government-controlled papers are generally reminding the Bush administration of their country's old ties and its role in serving as a safe and a reliable source of oil at a time when the price of a barrel of oil has recently gone over the US$50 mark. The chances are slim that the evolution of democracy will take up much time in the conversation between these two leaders.What is most interesting about the introduction of elections in the highly religious autocracy is that it is willing to experiment with something that King Fahd Ben Abdel Aziz only a few years ago depicted as not within the culture of Islam. In the overall expression of hoopla and criticism related to the Saudi elections, no one should forget that real change in the birthplace of Islam will come only when there is a serious dialogue about the necessity for reforming Wahhabi perspectives. In their palpable willingness to open up or even to democratize their polity, the Saudi rulers are either not really understanding what they must do, or fooling the US by allowing cosmetic changes as a substitute for real ones in the name of democracy, since that is what Washington is currently demanding in the Muslim Middle East.
What the Saudi rulers must do is to reform the Wahhabi perspectives through a serious debate and dialogue inside their borders among various groups, including the Shi'ites and the Sufis, and those who are not firmly committed to the Wahhabi worldview. At one time, the acutely anti-Shi'ite, anti-Sufi and extremely obscurantist Wahhabi viewpoint served the interests of the Saudi dynasty by bringing them to power. Today, those perspectives are in dire need of radical surgery. Until that happens, Saudi Arabia seems to follow a strategy of biding its time until the hardline insistence for political reform from Washington either dissipates or completely withers away.
From the Saudi predilections for avoiding and postponing changes as much as possible, that might be a deft move. However, considering how important it is to bring about genuine change in the Saudi polity, postponing or avoiding these changes might not be in the best interest of that country.
Since when do Topper$ of any nationality care about the best interests of any country?
They don't. This is more what they truely care about:
Oil price above $55 as refiners consolidate
While environmental laws have forced oil companies to increase investment in refineries in recent years, the Financial Times says that most of the new refineries are to be built in Asia, particularly China, but no new ones are planned for the US and Western Europe, which have built none for three decades. The FT says that Goldman Sachs estimates that a total of 2.575m b/d of refinery capacity will be added by the end of 2010, but global oil demand growth is expected to average about 1.5m b/d for the rest of the decade.Last week, Saudi Arabia confirmed plans to increase oil production investment and the news today of consolidation in the oil refining market, is also evidence that downstream capacity constraints may also be getting attention.
Valero Energy Corp. and Premcor Inc. announced today that the companies have executed a merger agreement for Valero to acquire Premcor in an $8 billion transaction. As a result, Valero will add four refineries and 790,000 barrels per day (BPD) of throughput capacity to its system, making it the largest refiner in North America.
I cited a piece above that indicated a desire by the Saudis for increased respect. This is what they get:
Saudi Aramco CEO named Petroleum Executive of the Year for 2005
Abdallah S. Jum'ah, President and Chief Executive Officer of Saudi Arabian Oil Company (Saudi Aramco), will be honored as the recipient of the Petroleum Executive of the Year Award for 2005, it was announced today by Thomas Wallin, President of Energy Intelligence. Jum'ah was chosen by his peers in a confidential selection process administered by Energy Intelligence.
The names of the following previous awardees should be very informative to the perceptive:
Previous winners of the Energy Intelligence/International Herald Tribune Petroleum Executive of the Year Award include: David O'Reilly (2004), Lee Raymond (2003), James J. Mulva (2002) Sir Mark Moody-Stuart (2001), Thierry Desmarest (2000), Lucio Noto (1999), Luis E. Giusti (1998), and Lord Browne of Madingley (1997).
So who makes this selection?
"The process by which the winner of this award is selected is particularly noteworthy and assures that the selection is fully representative of the views of the industry," says Raja W. Sidawi, Chairman of Energy Intelligence. Nominations for the award were solicited from the Chief Executives and other senior managers of over 100 of the world's largest oil and gas firms, as they appear in the annual rankings published by Petroleum Intelligence Weekly, Energy Intelligence's flagship publication. The nominations were then reviewed by a representative group of senior oil executives from around the world, who made the final selection.
Somehow, I doubt that the Saudis are seeking such superficiality in lieu of respect. But they can afford to be patient. Tide and Time are both on their side:
Oil hits $56 on refinery problems
Oil prices made fresh gains on Monday as refinery problems in the United States kept the market edgy about a possible squeeze on gasoline supplies this summer. "High oil prices look set to persist despite OPEC's promises of more supply and the first, tentative signs of the negative impact of high prices on oil demand growth," said London's Centre for Global Energy Studies in a report. High OPEC crude supplies have done little to calm fears of a gasoline shortfall this summer and a shortage of heating fuel at the end of the year. Inventories in the world's biggest consumer are 5 percent higher than a year ago.Iraqi oil officials said on Sunday the country's northern crude exports could resume in a few days if workers repaired the damage from a new sabotage attack that had delayed oil flows. The pipeline to Turkey's Ceyhan port handled 800,000 barrels per day of Kirkuk crude before the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq. It has been mostly idle since.
Traders have grown increasingly anxious about U.S. gasoline supplies ahead of the summer driving season. A spate of refinery problems has raised fears that plants -- already operating near capacity -- may struggle to sate rising demand.
Traders said a gasoline-making unit at a ConocoPhillips' refinery in Louisiana would be down for another week after failing to restart following maintenance, compounding other refinery problems in Texas and Kansas.
But fear not, Red Staters! Yore Leedur hasn't forsaken you and your blood-for-SUV-oil lusts! He's pushed through more War Funding!
Bush seeks fourth surplus war budget
US President George Bush urged congress at the weekend to agree on new spending for the 'war on terrorism', and asked legislators to restrain other government outlays to avoid swelling budget deficits. For the US military operating in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere, "we must give them all the resources they need to protect us from the threats of enemies and to prevail in the war on terror", Bush said in his weekly radio broadcast. In other parts of the budget, "spending discipline requires difficult choices", he said.
Making Those Difficult Choices
The US senate on April 21 approved $81,3bn in additional spending for this year, mostly for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and slightly less than the $81,4bn congress approved last month. Bush originally wanted $81,9bn.
Fiscal discipline! Nothing like a modicum of economic restraint to show that upstart Executive who's the Constitutional boss!
Digging A Deeper Hole
The funding pushes military costs for the two wars to more than $100bn for fiscal 2005. The money is the fourth supplemental budget outside the regular budget for Iraq and Afghanistan. It brings emergency spending approved since 2003 to about $280bn.
It's OK with Alan, isn't it?
Last week US Federal Reserve head Alan Greenspan urged the administration to act on reducing debt. The most recent congressional estimate is for $394bn. The Bush administration projects a record budget deficit $427bn this fiscal year.
So while you are waving that tattered and torn American flag as you roar about at excessive speeds in your Triton V10 pick-up with the monster tires and skyscraper suspensions, just keep in mind one thing: While your brothers and cousins are getting sent to Iraq to pay for your profligacy with their blood, our 'allies' have their eyes on another prize:
Saudi oil minister says focus shifting to overseas refineries
Despite President George W. Bush's pleas for new refinery capacity in the United States, Saudi Arabia has no plans to deliver on a proposal to build two very large refineries Saudi Arabian oil minister Ali Naimi told Dow Jones Sunday. Rather, the Kingdom has shifted efforts to off-shore refineries.During last year's conference, Naimi said that Saudi Arabia was dedicated to helping the U.S. address bottlenecks in the supply chain by providing additional refining capacity. At a conference in New York in late April, 2004, Naimi disclosed plans to build two 500,000 barrel a day refineries in the U.S. as soon as possible. The additional million barrels could have been a significant boost to U.S. processing capacity, which is currently 16.3 million barrels a day, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
Skeptics had said the 1 million barrels a day wasn't realistic, and the projects would be deterred by finance and bureaucratic requirements.
A year later, the plans have officially fallen through, with Naimi saying that Saudi Arabia has made no progress on funding two new refineries in the U.S. Naimi's comments follow President Bush's recent calls for additional refinery capacity. Both Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney have blamed high oil prices on a lack of new U.S. refining capacity.
Having 'Other Priorities'
Although Saudi Arabia's U.S. refinery projects have languished, Naimi said the country is making "plenty" of progress on refining projects overseas. He did not specify the precise capacity or location of these refining projects, but so far, Saudi Arabia has announced plans to develop a refinery in China, and has discussed the possibility of a refinery to meet India's fuel needs. With surging demand for oil and transportation fuels, the countries make a clear target for Saudi efforts to expand refining capacity. The pair of booming Asian economies is expected to account for more than 20% of demand growth in the next decade, according to statistics from the International Energy Agency.
That should make you feel better! Just remember who brought that Chinese or Indian oil company to you in America when you are filling up your moped on your way to 'vote' when the next (s)election comes about.
Knowing that will make it easier for you to allow Diebold or ES&S to assign your vote for you.
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