Eagle Ford Shale
<p><font face="Times New Roman" size="4" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"></font></p><p><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">=</font></p><div style="font-size: small; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4" /><div><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"><font face="Times New Roman" size="4">Matthew Phelan, Jesse Hicks/August 3, 2020</font></font></font></font></div><div>
</div><div><b>Inside the Project Veritas Plan to Steal the Election</b></div><div>
</div><div><span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">James O’Keefe’s group is part of a sprawling campaign to delegitimize mail-in balloting in the fall—a campaign being led by the White House.</span></div><div><font face="Times New Roman" size="4">
</font></div><div><a href="https://newrepublic.com/article/158622/inside-project-veritas-plan-steal-election" style="text-decoration-line: none; font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 51, 153); outline: none;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000">https://newrepublic.com/article/158622/inside-project-veritas-plan-steal-election</font></a></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">https://newrepublic.com/article/158622/inside-project-veritas-plan-steal-election </font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">
</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"> James O’Keefe had big plans for 2020. The founder of Project Veritas, the conspiratorial right-wing group that specializes in Fox News–friendly “stings” intended to expose supposed liberal bias and corruption in American society, was planning on getting married this past May. The wedding, to a <b>public school teacher</b>, was to be at an exclusive country club in upstate New York. The guest list was packed with Make America Great Again world cognoscenti: <span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Donald Trump Jr., Sean Hannity, Michelle Malkin, Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, and his activist wife Ginni were all invited, as were several of<b> O’Keefe’s most generous conservative donors, including Texas shale oil billionaire George Bishop</b> and Bullpen Capital founder Paul Martino.</span></font></div></div></div><div><font face="Times New Roman" size="4">=</font></div><div><a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/03/14/815039722/trump-steps-in-to-help-oil-industry-facing-its-own-coronavirus-crisis">https://www.npr.org/2020/03/14/815039722/trump-steps-in-to-help-oil-industry-facing-its-own-coronavirus-crisis</a></div><div>
</div><div>he tired to play it like shrew bottom feed strat but actually bailout to frakkers?</div><div><font face="Times New Roman" size="4">npr 3/14?</font></div><div><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">...Oil <span style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">prices bounced back a bit after President Trump said the Department of Energy would buy crude for the nation's strategic petroleum reserve.</span></font></div><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">"We're going to fill it right to the top," Trump said Friday in a wide-ranging news conference at the White House. He said it will save taxpayers "billions and billions of dollars" while helping an industry that's been reeling.</font></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">While oil prices increased nearly 5% after Friday's announcement, that was just a fraction of the amount they lost earlier in the week.</font></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">In South Texas, Rudy Martinez immediately experienced the effects of the past week's <a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/03/08/813439501/saudi-arabia-stuns-world-with-massive-discount-in-oil-sold-to-asia-europe-and-u-" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; text-decoration-line: none;">collapse in crude oil prices</a>.</font></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">"I actually have a little man camp and these guys are on the way out because they lost contracts," says Martinez, who has eight rooms he rents to out-of-town oilfield workers in Karnes City, Texas.</font></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">"The workers get their per-diem and I charge them $100 a person [per week]. Actually I'd like to charge them a little more than that, but now that it's tapered off, it's hard to charge them that because they can't pay it," he says.</font></p><aside id="ad-backstage-wrap" aria-label="advertisement" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><div id="ad-backstage-News_National" class="ad-backstage" data-ad-config="{" network="network" site="site" default="default" n6735.npr="n6735.NPR" mobile="mobile" n6735.nprmobile="n6735.NPRMOBILE" zone="zone" news_national="News_National" targets="targets" testserver="testserver" false="false" ispodcastepisode="isPodcastEpisode" storyid="storyId" agg="agg" location="location" backstage="backstage" deferred="deferred" isbetweencontent="isBetweenContent" true="true" isaggsponsorship="isAggSponsorship" borderclass="borderClass" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; clear: both; text-align: center;" /></aside><div id="res815169302" class="bucketwrap internallink insettwocolumn inset2col " style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 27px 15px; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; position: relative; float: right; width: 330.438px; clear: right; z-index: 1; background: 0px 0px rgb(255, 255, 255);"><div class="bucket img" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border-width: 1px 0px 0px; border-top-style: solid; border-right-style: initial; border-bottom-style: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-top-color: rgb(224, 224, 224); border-right-color: initial; border-bottom-color: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-image: initial; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; overflow: hidden;"><div class="bucketblock" style="box-sizing: content-box; margin: 0px 0px 0px 80px; padding: 9px 11px 9px 17px; border: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; min-height: 62px;"><h3 style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.27273; vertical-align: baseline; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;"><a href="https://www.npr.org/series/812054919/the-coronavirus-crisis" data-metrics="{" category="category" story="Story" to="to" action="action" click="Click" internal="Internal" link="Link" label="label" https="https" www.npr.org="www.npr.org" series="series" the-coronavirus-crisis="the-coronavirus-crisis" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; text-decoration-line: none; -webkit-font-smoothing: subpixel-antialiased;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000">The Coronavirus Crisis</font></a></h3></div></div></div><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Back when the oil business was really booming in Karnes City, Martinez says he could charge up to $2000 a week per person.</font></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">This is one small example of what declining oil prices mean for the rural communities that depend on the oil business. And there's a lot at stake for the U.S., the world's largest producer of crude oil.</font></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Oil prices had been falling out of fears the coronavirus epidemic threatened world economic growth. Demand was also down as large gatherings were canceled and people started staying home to avoid getting sick.</font></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">Then prices plunged after <a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/03/08/813439501/saudi-arabia-stuns-world-with-massive-discount-in-oil-sold-to-asia-europe-and-u-" style="box-sizing: border-box; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; text-decoration-line: none;">Saudi Arabia and Russia</a> failed to agree on production cuts and instead entered a price war last Sunday. In a stunning reversal, Saudi Arabia said it would actually boost oil production and offer a massive discount for its customers.</font></p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 1.17647em; padding: 0px 15px; border: 0px; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; line-height: 1.70588; vertical-align: baseline; max-width: 680px; position: static; float: none; width: auto;"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);"><b>U.S. oil companies, especially smaller ones, are now looking to make deep cuts. Industry analysts warn of possible bankruptcies, especially if oil remains where it's fallen to, in the $30 per barrel range. Companies operating in Texas's Eagle Ford Shale need prices between $40 to $60 a barrel to remain profitable....</b></font></p><div><font face="Times New Roman" size="4"></font></div><p><font face="Times New Roman" size="4" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"></font></p><p><a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/fracking-cleanup-costs-2641678836.html"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" color="#000000">https://www.ecowatch.com/fracking-cleanup-costs-2641678836.html</font></a></p><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">In over their heads with debt, U.S. shale oil and gas firms are now moving from a boom in <a href="http://www.ecowatch.com/tag/fracking/" style="text-decoration-color: rgb(82, 149, 70); line-height: 1.5;">fracking</a> to a <a href="https://finance.yahoo.com/news/meet-biggest-losers-u-shale-000000755.html" target="blank" style="text-decoration-color: rgb(82, 149, 70); line-height: 1.5;">boom in bankruptcies</a>. This trend of failing finances has the potential for the U.S. public, both at the state and federal levels, to be left on the hook for paying to properly shut down and clean up even more drilling sites.</font></p><div class="rebellt-item col1" data-basename="particle-1" data-href="https://www.ecowatch.com/fracking-cleanup-costs-2641678836.html?rebelltitem=1#rebelltitem1" data-id="1" data-is-image="False" data-reload-ads="false" id="rebelltitem1" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><p /><p><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Expect these companies to try reducing their debt through the process of bankruptcy and, like <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2019/11/01/business/murray-energy-coal-bankruptcy-pension/index.html" target="blank" style="text-decoration-color: rgb(82, 149, 70); line-height: 1.5;">the coal industry</a>, attempting to get out of environmental and employee-related financial obligations.</font></p><p /></div><div class="rebellt-item col1" data-basename="particle-2" data-href="https://www.ecowatch.com/fracking-cleanup-costs-2641678836.html?rebelltitem=2#rebelltitem2" data-id="2" data-is-image="False" data-reload-ads="false" id="rebelltitem2"><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" /><h3 style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); display: flex; justify-content: space-between; align-items: center;"><font size="4"><font face="Times New Roman">The Bankruptcy of EP Energy</font></font></h3><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">In Octobe<b>r, EP Energy — one of the largest oil producers in the Eagle Ford Shale region in Texas — <a href="https://www.bizjournals.com/sanantonio/news/2019/10/07/major-eagle-ford-player-declares-bankruptcy.html" target="blank" style="text-decoration-color: rgb(82, 149, 70); line-height: 1.5;">filed for bankruptcy</a> because the firm couldn't pay back almost $5 billion in debt, making it the largest <a href="https://www.wsj.com/articles/ep-energy-files-largest-u-s-energy-bankruptcy-since-2016-11570204927" target="blank" style="text-decoration-color: rgb(82, 149, 70); line-height: 1.5;">oil and gas bankruptcy</a> since 2016.</b></font></p><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">EP Energy hasn't produced a profit since 2014 and <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-10-04/apollo-and-elliott-team-up-to-save-ep-energy-stake-in-bankruptcy" target="blank" style="text-decoration-color: rgb(82, 149, 70); line-height: 1.5;">Bloomberg reported</a> that the company would need oil to be at "a price closer to $70 per barrel" for EP to be profitable. Oil has not come close to averaging over <a href="https://www.macrotrends.net/1369/crude-oil-price-history-chart" target="blank" style="text-decoration-color: rgb(82, 149, 70); line-height: 1.5;">$70 a barrel</a> since 2014.</font></p><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Despite its financial struggles at current low oil prices, the company plans to continue operating after restructuring and eliminating up to $3 billion in debt. However, EP has not identified any funds that it would be setting aside for well cleanup, which is not unusual for an oil and gas company.</font></p><p><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">In response, <a href="https://cases.primeclerk.com/EPEnergy/Home-DocketInfo?DockRelatedSearchValue=182" target="blank" style="text-decoration-color: rgb(82, 149, 70); line-height: 1.5;">as part of the bankruptcy proceedings,</a> the <a href="https://www.desmogblog.com/sites/beta.desmogblog.com/files/EP%20Energy%20Govt%20Objections.pdf" target="blank" style="text-decoration-color: rgb(82, 149, 70); line-height: 1.5;">U.S. Department of the Interior filed a document</a> arguing that EP Energy is still responsible for its obligations to assure the "decommissioning, plugging, and abandonment" of any of the EP Energy wells that are located on leased federal and tribal lands.</font></p><p style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">Ideally, that would mean EP Energy sets aside funds for the proper cleanup and end-of-life processes for its oil and gas wells, which number <a href="https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:i3sPT5lEYgAJ:https://www.bizjournals.com/sanantonio/news/2019/10/07/major-eagle-ford-player-declares-bankruptcy.html+&cd=5&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us" target="_blank" style="text-decoration-color: rgb(82, 149, 70); line-height: 1.5;">more than 800 in the Eagle Ford region</a>.</font></p><p><font size="4" face="Times New Roman" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 102);">However, the federal government hasn't even named a number yet for how much that should be. The Bureau of Land Management and Bureau of Indian Affairs "are currently still assessing the status of reclamation and plugging and abandonment obligations across the Debtors' onshore federal and Indian leases," writes the Interior Department.</font></p></div><p><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">...</font></p><p><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"></font></p><p><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">desmog has been going on about this bubble ponzi scheme a while?</font></p><p><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><a href="https://www.desmogblog.com/2019/11/06/debt-fracking-chesapeake-energy-stock-price-dollar">https://www.desmogblog.com/2019/11/06/debt-fracking-chesapeake-energy-stock-price-dollar</a></font></p><p><font size="4" face="Times New Roman">1219</font></p>