The Truth about Bush & Enron
No policy pals.

By Bill Lickert & Christopher Morris, research associates at the Capital Research Center
February 8, 2002 9:55 a.m.

he media are looking avidly for any signs that collapsed-energy-giant Enron may have had undue influence over the Bush administration's energy policy. They're also completely ignoring Enron's involvement with environmental-activist groups during the Clinton years. Enron has endorsed policy initiatives opposed by the Bush administration, including the high-profile Kyoto Treaty on climate change. And it provided almost $1.5 million in grants to green groups that pushed for Clinton administration global-warming policies the Bush White House now rejects.

Clearly, the whole story hasn't been told. Capital Research Center studies indicate that far from being the Bush administration's closest collaborator, Enron has been a major backer of green groups — groups which have been a thorn in the administration's side since day one. Enron is far from being the champion of Bush environmental policies some want to believe.

During the Clinton administration, Enron was a corporate supporter for those who demanded international energy controls to reduce so-called global warming. From 1994 to 1996, the Enron Foundation contributed $990,000 to the Nature Conservancy. The Conservancy's "Climate Change" project promotes global-warming theories, a key component of the Kyoto Protocol. Indeed, one internal Enron memo — circulated immediately after the 1997 Kyoto meeting — shows the company believed that the treaty could provide it with a financial windfall. According to the memo, which was first reported by the Washington Post, the Kyoto treaty "would do more to promote Enron's business than will almost any other regulatory initiative outside of restructuring the energy and natural-gas industries in Europe and the United States."

Last June, President Bush refused to sign the treaty, saying it "is, in many ways, unrealistic" and that "it's not sound public policy." Despite pressure from green groups, the administration pulled out of last fall's meeting in Marrakesh, Morocco, on the treaty's implementation.

Enron, however, has been at the forefront of the global-warming debate, and was an early and strong supporter of Kyoto and Kyoto's proponents:

In January 1997, the company announced formation of the Enron Renewable Energy Corporation to offer alternatives to the "$250 billion U.S. electricity market." Renewable Energy CEO Tom White supported President Clinton's $6.3 million plan to fight global warming.

Later that year, Enron CEO Kenneth Lay was named a member of President Clinton's "Council on Sustainable Development," joining Secretary of the Interior Bruce Babbitt, EPA Administrator Carol Browner, and Fred Krupp, executive director of the Environmental Defense Fund. The task force also included representatives from the Sierra Club, the National Wildlife Federation, and the Natural Resources Defense Council.

The National Environmental Trust, a public-relations organization heavily funded by the Pew Charitable Trusts to promote environmental policies, worked with Kenneth Lay to place pro-Kyoto editorials (under Lay's signature) in the Houston Chronicle, the Austin-American Statesman, and the Salt Lake City Tribune.

When President Clinton called for a gradual reduction in greenhouse gases, to lay the groundwork for U.S. backing of Kyoto, Enron executives expressed their support. In an Atlanta Constitution article, Enron Senior Vice President Terry Thorn called the announcement "a measured, appropriate action plan given what we know today about global warming. This will unleash the ingenuity of American business to find creative solutions."

Enron also urged the Nature Resources Defense Council (NRDC) and a coalition of Oregon environmental groups to sign a memorandum of agreement endorsing its 1997 purchase of Portland General Electric, despite objections by the state Public Utility Commission. Portland's Willamette Week newspaper has reported that these groups subsequently received grants from Enron totaling nearly $500,000. Among the beneficiaries is Northwest Environmental Advocates ($30,000), which is a member of the Oregon Climate Action Network — a coalition that has lobbied Congress to support Kyoto.

The company itself has said that Kyoto would help its bottom line. Enron and the Bush administration can hardly be said to see eye to eye on energy policy.