A senior ExxonMobil lobbyist has been captured on camera revealing how the oil giant is using its power and influence to water down US climate legislation.
The explosive footage was obtained by Unearthed, Greenpeace UKs investigative platform, who posed as head-hunters to obtain the information from one of ExxonMobils most senior Washington lobbyists.
The recordings appear to reveal the secretive behind-the-scenes activities of a lobbyist for a company that claims in public to support action on climate change, while fighting against legislative attempts to tackle it.
ExxonMobil say they have supported climate science for decades and accuse Greenpeace of waging a multi-decade campaign against their company and industry. They insist their lobbying fully comply with all laws and are publicly disclosed on a quarterly basis.
Keith McCoy is a senior ExxonMobil lobbyist on Capitol Hill and has represented the company in its liaison with the US Congress for the last eight years.
Greenpeace UKs Unearthed platform posed as head-hunters looking to hire a Washington D.C. lobbyist for a major client. They approached Mr McCoy, who agreed to speak over Zoom.
During the covert recordings, which have been passed to Channel 4 News, Mr McCoy claims: - the company secretly fought against legislative action on climate change using third-party organisations - he lobbied key senators to remove and/or diminish climate change measures from President Bidens US $2 trillion infrastructure and jobs bill as it proceeds through the legislative process - he regards trade bodies like the American Petroleum Institute as whipping boys in order to avoid public scrutiny on Capitol Hill - During the virtual meeting held on 7 May, the investigators asked Mr McCoy questions about ExxonMobils current and historical lobbying on environmental issues.
In the excerpts from the footage to be broadcast on Channel 4 News tonight, Mr McCoy claims that ExxonMobil has aggressively fought science to deny climate change in order to maximise profit and shareholder return. He alleges that ExxonMobil joined shadow groups to pursue climate change denial.
Mr McCoy said: Did we aggressively fight against some of the science? Yes. Did we hide our science? Absolutely not. Did we join some of these shadow groups to work against some of the early efforts? Yes, thats true. But theres nothing, theres nothing illegal about that.
We were looking out for our investments. We were looking out for our shareholders. ExxonMobil told Channel 4 News that they have supported climate science for decades.
Mr McCoy likens the approach to lobbying congressmen to the way fishermen target fish, claiming that ExxonMobil puts out bait and then reels in congressmen on issues like carbon tax, electric vehicles, chemicals, taxation and infrastructure.
Mr McCoy said: When you have an opportunity to talk to a member of Congress, I liken it to fishing, right? You know you have bait, you throw that bait out. And they say: Oh, you want to talk about infrastructure, yeah.
And then you start to reel them in and you start to have these conversations about federal leasing programmes, you start to have these conversations about a carbon tax. You know, its all these opportunities that you use and to use the fishing analogy again just to kind of reel them in.
He added: I make sure I get them the right information that they need so they look good. And then they help me out. Theyre a captive audience. They know they need you. And I need them.
He says lobbyists aim to have a direct relationship with a member of congress, adding: You want to be able to go to the chief and say we need congressman so and so to be able to either introduce this bill, we need him to make a floor statement, we need him to send a letter. You name it, weve asked for everything.
Mr McCoy names 11 senators who he says are crucial to ExxonMobil: Senator Shelley Moore Capito, Senator Joe Manchin, Senator Kyrsten Sinema, Senator Jon Tester, Senator Maggie Hassan, Senator John Barrasso, Senator John Cornyn, Senator Steve Daines, Senator Chris Coons, Senator Mark Kelly and Senator Marco Rubio.
We gave all these senators a chance to respond. All the senators declined to comment. There is no suggestion of illegality.
Channel 4 News has established, through Federal Election Commission (FEC) data, that all except two of these senators (Senators Maggie Hassan and Mark Kelly) have received financial contributions from ExxonMobil.
ExxonMobil insists our lobbying efforts fully comply with all laws and are publicly disclosed on a quarterly basis.
Mr McCoy described Senator Joe Manchin as the Kingmaker in the Senate and he says he spoke to his office on a weekly basis.
The FEC data shows Senator Manchin has received at least $12,500 from the ExxonMobil Political Action Committee in declared disbursements since the beginning of the 2011-12 election cycle.
Mr McCoy described how a big piece of [his] job is education and advocacy and says that in his work on behalf of ExxonMobil he argues that US government programmes to roll out electric vehicles are unrealistic.
Mr McCoy described a lobbying strategy in which he claims ExxonMobil uses third parties to mask its interests from public view and accountability.
He said: We dont want it to be us, to have these conversations, especially in a hearing. Its getting our associations to step in and have those conversations and answer those tough questions and be for, the lack of a better term, the whipping boy for some of these members of congress.
He added: There was something we were working on earlier this week where we, where our CEO was invited to a hearing from a member of congress who we know is just going to rip him to shreds when he goes there. So, we look at it and we say: well, why us?
Mr McCoy claims that ExxonMobil lobbied Congress to dilute the climate provisions of President Bidens Infrastructure Bill.
He said: Thats a completely different conversation when you start to stick to roads and bridges. And instead of a $2 trillion bill, its an $800 billion dollar bill. If you lower that threshold, you stick to highways and bridges then a lot of the negative stuff starts to come out.
Why would you put in something on emissions reductions on climate change to oil refineries in a highway bill? So, people say yeah that doesnt make any sense, so then you get to the germane of saying that shouldnt be in this bill.
ExxonMobil said: Our discussion on the bill are not accurately portrayed. Our lobbying efforts are related to a tax burden that could disadvantage US businesses.
Mr McCoy appears to suggest that ExxonMobils public support for a carbon tax is underpinned by the conviction it will never happen, allowing the company to support it in order to appear green.
He said: I will tell you there is not an appetite for a carbon tax. It is a non-starter. Nobody is going to propose a tax on all Americans. And the cynical side of me says yeah we kind of know that. But it gives us a talking point. We can say well what is ExxonMobil for? Well were for a carbon tax.
Carbon tax is not gonna happen. I have always said, and Ive worked on climate change issues for twenty years. Theres a lot of talk around it and the bottom line is its going to take political courage, political will in order to get something done. And that just doesnt exist in politics. It just doesnt.