Heads May Roll After Sex-For-Oil Scandal

(AP)  Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne told Congress Thursday he is considering firing employees in his department's oil royalties office who investigators say were receiving lavish gifts, partying and having sexual relationships with oil company officials.

Kempthorne also told a House panel that he would appoint an attorney-adviser to watch over ethics in the Denver office at the center of the scandal. The office is responsible for marketing billions of dollars worth of oil and natural gas that energy companies barter to the government in lieu of cash royalty payments for drilling on federal lands, a program known as Royalty-In-Kind.

"I can assure the committee that this process will be completed as swiftly as possible, and we will examine the full spectrum of disciplinary actions, including termination," said Kempthorne, who said he was outraged by employees' abuse of the public's trust. Kempthorne said he was also considering random drug testing for employees. The Royalty-In-Kind program employees were not subject to drug testing, Kempthorne said.

Last week, in three separate reports, the Interior Department Inspector General Earl E. Devaney alleged that 13 employees in Washington and Denver were rigging bids, accepting expensive gifts, and partying with oil company employees from 2002 to 2006. Several employees in the office were using marijuana and cocaine, according to the reports, and a third of the 55 employees in the Denver office accepted gifts from oil and gas companies.

Devaney told members of the House Natural Resources Committee Thursday that the conduct of the Minerals Management Service employees was "egregious" and said he was at a loss to explain the behavior of oil and gas company representatives.

"Simply stated, the MMS employees named in these latest reports had a callous disregard for the rules by which the rest of us are required to play," Devaney said.

Devaney, under questioning, said there was no evidence that any of the personal relationships brought benefits to the oil companies, but he said there should be an outright ban on accepting gifts and gratuities from any industry.

Federal employees are currently barred from accepting individual gifts over $20, and can accept no more than $50 in gifts each year. The nine employees targeted by the investigation accepted snowboarding lessons, ski and golf trips and concert tickets from four oil companies — Shell, Chevron Corp., Hess Corp. and Denver-based Gary-Williams Energy Corp. — that were doing business with the government.

Some lawmakers on Thursday asked what the Interior Department was doing about the industry's behavior.

"What's the standard of conduct you're developing for the people having conduct with the United States government?" asked Rep. George Miller, D-Calif. "What about the behavior by the private sector here?"

Earlier this week, the House passed legislation that would expand offshore drilling, increasing the royalties collected by the federal government. The bill also would establish penalties and jail time for oil executives and department employees who receive improper gifts.

House Natural Resources Chairman Nick Rahall, D-W.Va., said the problems within the Interior Department could be amplified if drilling is expanded.

"These are serious issues, but they are more serious now as we face the certain prospect that vast swaths of federal waters will become open to oil and gas leasing in the very near future," Rahall said.

[indianaman13]

We have given Bush''s policies a chance. The SEC is run by a republican, no wonder so much illegal trading has gone unchecked. Even McCain would fire the SEC head. Why are we in Iraq spending 10 billion a month, when that money needs to be spent here, fixing America! No child left behind is a joke, ask teachers. Every child is different and learns differently. Some kids learn visually, some learn by reading, some learn from combining both. To Pigeon hole every child by ONE standard way of teaching is preposterous. Why don''t we go to the private school where almost ALL politicians and businessmen and use the system those ELITE SCHOOLS teach, and teach the same in public schools. Whatever they use works, look at how much is costs to send kids there.

[indianaman13]

If i did coke and smoked pot at work or with company officials i wasn''t supposed to mingle with out of work, i would get fired in a heartbeat, as would any other employee in any other company. Why are they being protected? I think their are enough people out of work, here in America, that the department could find replacements.

[clovisbuford]

We need send Sen. Kennedy & Rep. Kennedy to investigate. They are very knowledgeable about this degree of partying.
Posted by downsteamjim at 07:01 PM : Sep 18, 2008
Really they should get jack abramooff or stephen griles to carry it to the next level in fact griles was over this divion for a while . downstream jim likes to try to link it to dems , but its jsut another example of the corruption and debasement of the US government by Bush and co.

[stupidrules3]

"I can assure the committee that this process will be completed as swiftly as possible, and we will examine the full spectrum of disciplinary actions, including termination,"

What about prosecution??????

[pollroller1]

The only thing that pissess me off is that I don''t have a job like that.

[downsteamjim]

We need send Sen. Kennedy & Rep. Kennedy to investigate. They are very knowledgeable about this degree of partying.

[theoldbag-2009]

I just don''t believe that persons in the oil and gas industry who provided gifts to employees of the federal government didn''t expect something in return. THAT''s unamerican. Sounds to me like "someone" is trying hard to hush this up real quick.

[joepack61]

This is another example of Bush Republican cronyism run amock. Kempthorne is now "outraged" and will take action. Wasn''t it an outside agency that discovered this problem, not Interior? Who is this Kempthorne guy? What were his qualifications for Secretary of the Interior? Don''t tell me ... Bush campaign contributor, dog catcher in Texas, and longtime Republican Party hack.

[joepack61]

Hey louiville2, in your lame attempt to accuse Olberman of lying ( Were you really offended because he mentioned a Palin lie? - wake up my friend, ALL POLITICIANS LIE including McCain and Palin.), the article you refer to was published almost a year ago:

Keith Olbermann Apologizes to Daily Kos Readers
By Noel Sheppard (Bio | Archive)
January 19, 2008 - 15:58 ET
On Tuesday, in a report concerning MSNBC''s Keith Olbermann publishing his first article at the liberal website Daily Kos,...

And, it has nothing to do with lying, but rather Olberman apologized for offending readers.

You right wingers will say anything.

[brianbwb-2009]

"Devaney, under questioning, said there was no evidence that any of the personal relationships brought benefits to the oil companies,"

How about 10 billion in un-accounted for lost payments, allowance of changing bids after contracts were awarded, and bid rigging? Does Devaney really think that the RIK admin simply accepted gifts, and also allowed such mismanagement to occur, but that the two are not related?

If you put a cat and a bird in a small room where there are no openings big enough to escape, then walk away, returning to find no bird, feathers on the floor, some bird blood, and a happy, satiated looking cat, Devaney would say that there is no evidence that the cat ate the bird.

Knowing how corruption works, evidence suggests Devaney may be protecting those with whom he might have received a cut of the oil companies'' largesse.