DeLay provision in energy bill to benefit Saudi chemical company in Sugarland

What do you get when you mix Tom DeLay, millions in lobbying expenditures by the Saudi Royal Family, the chemical MTBE, and the House Energy Bill? Another toxic mess, courtesy of the former exterminator from Sugarland. The Boston Globe has all the sordid details:

“A company largely owned by the Saudi government has spent more than $1.5 million since 1998 lobbying Congress to shield the chemical industry from liability for damages caused by MTBE, a potentially cancer-causing gasoline additive…

“[Tom] DeLay is the chief proponent of a provision in the sweeping federal energy bill to relieve the MTBE industry of most liability for cleanup…

“The Saudi company, SABIC, is a leading maker of MTBE. It faces loss of business and potentially heavy cleanup costs if Congress does not protect the industry from lawsuits. The company, which has a member of the Saudi royal family as its chairman, has an office in Houston and a research and technology center in Sugar Land, Texas, DeLay's hometown and political base.”

Saudis lobby to limit liability on additive