Obama’s Exelon Connections

The White House Has Shown Preferential Treatment For Exelon, A Company With Long-Standing Ties To Obama

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EXELON HAS PRIVATE MEETINGS AND RECEIVED COVETED GRANTS FROM THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION

Exelon Was One Of Only Six Electric Utilities Selected For A $200 Million Energy Department Grant And Received A Commitment For $646 Million With “Extremely Generous Financial Terms” From The Treasury Department. “In addition, Exelon, which provides power to more than 6.6 million customers in at least 16 states and the District of Columbia, was chosen as one of only six electric utilities nationwide for the maximum $200 million stimulus grant from the Energy Department. And when the Treasury Department granted loans for renewable energy projects, Exelon landed a commitment for up to $646 million allowing it, on extremely generous financial terms, to finance one of the world’s largest photovoltaic solar projects.” (Eric Lipton, “Ties To Obama Aided In Access for Big Utility,” The New York Times , 8/22/12)

• “Records Show That Exelon Executives Were Able To Secure An Unusually Large Number Of Meetings With Top Administration Officials At Key Moments.” “White House records show that Exelon executives were able to secure an unusually large number of meetings with top administration officials at key moments in the consideration of environmental regulations that have been drafted in a way that hurt Exelon’s competitors, but curb the high cost of compliance for Exelon and its industry allies.” (Eric Lipton, “Ties To Obama Aided In Access for Big Utility,”The New York Times , 8/22/12)

Exelon’s Access And Success Leads Competitors To Lament That “[E]xelon Seems To Get Deference That I Can’t Get. “‘I would like to get some treatment in Washington like that,’ said Ken Anderson, general manager at Tri-State G&T, a Colorado-based power supplier that has been at odds with Exelon over environmental regulations. ‘But Exelon seems to get deference that I can’t get.'” (Eric Lipton, “Ties To Obama Aided In Access for Big Utility,” The New York Times , 8/22/12)

EXELON HAD ACCESS TO THE OBAMA WHITE HOUSE

“Exelon’s Top Executives Were Early And Frequent Supporters Of Mr. Obama As He Rose From The Illinois State Senate To The White House.” (Eric Lipton, “Ties To Obama Aided In Access for Big Utility,” The New York Times , 8/22/12)

Senior Campaign Adviser David Axelrod And Former Chief Of Staff Rahm Emanuel Both Have Ties To Exelon. “David Axelrod, Mr. Obama’s longtime political strategist, once worked as an Exelon consultant, and Rahm Emanuel, the Chicago mayor and Mr. Obama’s former chief of staff, helped create the company through a corporate merger in 2000 while working as an investment banker.” (Eric Lipton, “Ties To Obama Aided In Access for Big Utility,” The New York Times , 8/22/12)

John Rogers, Exelon Board Member And Family Friend, Is One Of Obama’s Biggest Campaign Bundlers. “By far the strongest link is with Mr. Rogers, the Exelon board member and family friend. A college classmate of Michelle Obama’s brother, he was co-chairman of Mr. Obama’s inauguration committee and still occasionally plays basketball with Mr. Obama. He is one of Mr. Obama’s biggest campaign donation bundlers, having raised more than $500,000, and has co-hosted several fund-raisers, including one in March that featured a performance by the Grammy-winning musician John Legend.” (Eric Lipton, “Ties To Obama Aided In Access for Big Utility,” The New York Times , 8/22/12)

William Von Hoene, Jr., Who Oversees Exelon’s Legal And Lobbying Team , Also Bundles For The Obama Campaign And Has Attended Meetings At The White House On Behalf Of Exelon. “Another Obama bundler is William A. Von Hoene Jr., who oversees Exelon’s legal and lobbying team out of Chicago, despite Mr. Obama’s rule against accepting contributions from lobbyists. Mr. Von Hoene is not a registered lobbyist, although records show he attended a White House meeting to push Exelon’s cause.” (Eric Lipton, “Ties To Obama Aided In Access for Big Utility,” The New York Times , 8/22/12)

Exelon Lobbyist Boasted That “It’s Nice” For Then-Exelon CEO John Rowe “To Be Able To Go To The White House And They Know His Name.” “But the relationship with the Obama administration was so strong that Exelon boasted about it after the election. ‘It’s nice for John to be able to go to the White House and they know his name,’ Elizabeth Anne Moler, then an Exelon lobbyist in Washington, told Forbes magazine, referring to Mr. Rowe, then its chief executive.” (Eric Lipton, “Ties To Obama Aided In Access for Big Utility,” The New York Times , 8/22/12)

Before Retiring, Then-Exelon CEO John Rowe Visited The White House Eight Times, And In 2011, He Met With Top Administration Officials Including Bill Daley, Cass Sunstein, Lisa Jackson, and Gina McCarthy. “White House records show that Mr. Rowe, before his retirement, visited eight times, far more than chief executives of coal-centered companies like American Electric Power that were fighting parts of the rules that Mr. Rowe was supporting. Exelon’s efforts peaked in 2011, White House meeting records show. Mr. Rowe flew to Washington in March, and met with William M. Daley, then Mr. Obama’s chief of staff; Cass Sunstein, then the head of the White House office that oversees all federal regulations; Lisa P. Jackson, administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency; and Gina McCarthy, the agency’s top air pollution official. Exelon’s competitors were seeking extra time to comply with the rule, which the administration was under a court order to issue. Exelon and its industry allies argued against any extension.” (Eric Lipton, “Ties To Obama Aided In Access for Big Utility,” The New York Times , 8/22/12)

IN 2008, OBAMA’S TIES TO EXELON ALSO RAISED “LEGITIMATE QUESTIONS”

The Washington Post ‘s “The Fact Checker” Says There Are “Legitimate Questions To Be Asked About [Obama’s] Dealings” With Exelon. “There are certainly legitimate questions to be asked about his dealings with senior Exelon executives, who have poured large sums of money into his campaign.” (Michael Dobbs, “Obama’s ‘Backroom Deal’?” The Washington Post‘s ” The Fact Checker,” 2/14/08)

During The 2008 Election Cycle, Exelon Employees Contributed $203,663 To Obama. (Center For Responsive Politics , Accessed 8/23/12)

Exelon Corp. Has Donated Money To Obama Since He Was A State Senator In Illinois.“Exelon executives and employees have given $161,000 to Obama’s presidential bid. He’s received an additional $86,000 since 1998 from Exelon’s political action committee, employees and predecessor, Commonwealth Edison. Obama got money from the company in his 1998 bid for the Illinois state Senate and for his failed 2000 congressional campaign. Exelon also donated to Obama’s PAC and his successful 2004 U.S. Senate bid.” (Erin Neff, Op-Ed, “Obama And Yucca,” Las Vegas Review-Journal, 5/15/07)

THEN-SENATOR OBAMA AND HIS STAFF WORKED WITH EXELON ON OBAMA’S NUCLEAR SAFETY LEGISLATION, WHICH WAS REWRITTEN AFTER EXELON RAISED OBJECTIONS

Exelon’s Chief Lobbyist Met With Obama’s Staff To Discuss His 2006 Nuclear Notification Legislation. “The chief Exelon lobbyist on the Obama bill was David C. Brown. … Brown says that he met with the Obama staffer responsible for the notification legislation, Todd Atkinson, half a dozen times between January and June 2006, while the bill was being considered by the Senate environment committee.” (Michael Dobbs, “Obama’s ‘Backroom Deal’?” The Washington Post‘s ” The Fact Checker,” 2/14/08)

• NOTE: In March 2006, Obama Introduced The Nuclear Release Notice Act Of 2006, Which Required Nuclear Plants To Immediately Notify Federal, State, And Local Authorities Of Any Accidental Release Of Nuclear Material Exceeding “Allowable Limits For Normal Operation” “On March 1, Mr. Obama introduced a bill known as the Nuclear Release Notice Act of 2006. It stated flatly that nuclear plants ‘shall immediately’ notify federal, state and local officials of any accidental release of radioactive material that exceeded ‘allowable limits for normal operation.'” (Mike McIntire, “Nuclear Leaks And Response Tested Obama In Senate,” The New York Times , 2/3/08)

Exelon’s Chief Lobbyist Arranged A Meeting Outside A Senate Hearing Room Between Obama And Exelon CEO And Campaign Contributor John W. Rowe. “In addition, he helped arrange a five-minute meeting between Exelon CEO (and Obama contributor) John W. Rowe and Senator Obama outside a Senate hearing room on March 29, at which the bill was briefly discussed.” (Michael Dobbs, “Obama’s ‘Backroom Deal’?” The Washington Post‘s ” The Fact Checker” Blog, 2/14/08)

When Exelon Shared Its Concerns About The Bill, Obama Said, “Fine, Work With Todd [Obama’s Legislative Assistant].” “As Brown remembers this conversation, Rowe told Obama that he supported his bill, but that the company had some concerns about the language. According to Brown, Obama replied, ‘Fine, work with Todd.'” (Michael Dobbs, “Obama’s ‘Backroom Deal’?” The Washington Post‘s ” The Fact Checker” Blog, 2/14/08)

Obama Eventually Agreed To Rewrite A “Drastically Different” Bill, Which Passed Out Of Committee In September 2006. “But eventually, Mr. Obama agreed to rewrite the bill, and when the environment committee approved it in September 2006, he and his co-sponsors hailed it as a victory. In interviews over the past two weeks, Obama aides insisted that the revisions did not substantively alter the bill. In fact, it was left drastically different.” (Mike McIntire, “Nuclear Leaks And Response Tested Obama In Senate,” The New York Times, 2/3/08)

• “[R]epresentatives Of Exelon And The Nuclear Commission Said They Were Satisfied With The Revised Bill.” (Mike McIntire, “Nuclear Leaks And Response Tested Obama In Senate,” The New York Times, 2/3/08)