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The Three Faces of Eve |
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By Bill Berkowitz
Robertson the televangelist: Over-the-top and outlandish musings, ridiculous predictions and scattershot opinions are the order of the day on his daily 700 Club television program. The politically savvy Pat Robertson: Ran for president in 1988 and built an infrastructure and computerized mail list that helped launch the Christian Coalition, the right-wing political juggernaut for much of the 1990s. Robertson the entrepreneur: Mega-wealthy businessman with international holdings
From also-ran to political kingmaker Robertson the political operative gave America Ralph Reed. By naming the relatively unknown Reed as executive director, Robertson chose a perfect counterpart; a soft-spoken, cherubic-looking, hardball-playing political strategist. During his tenure, Reed played smooth/cool (Dean Martin) to Robertson's weird/hot (Jerry Lewis). He was the bridge to the media, standing between Robertson's mean-spirited and conspiracy-tinged rhetoric and the Coalition's mainstreaming efforts. Reed was on the cutting edge of "big-tent" conservatism - initiating an ambitious, but under-funded effort to reach out to minorities and Catholic voters. Today, Reed runs his own political consulting outfit, was recently elected chairman of the Georgia Republican Party and is a key political advisor to President George W. Bush. Many political observers credit him with orchestrating the Religious Right's massive voter turnout that led to Bush's South Carolina primary victory, which ultimately turned the tide against Sen. John McCain. These days the Christian Coalition is mired in financial problems and experiencing rapidly declining membership roles. It has been eclipsed by other more activist Christian right organizations. The Coalition's best days are behind them. The CENCO dilemma But Robertson the moneymaker is alive and well. Not long after he sold his Family Channel, the CENCO Refinery Co., an entity controlled by the Robertson Charitable Trusts, bought the former Powerine refinery located in Santa Fe Springs, California. Robertson claims that he was going to earmark the profits from this company for use by his charitable enterprises, including his "flying hospital," a jet with medical personnel who treat children in Third World Countries. Not one to be skeptical, nevertheless I'm reminded that over the years several investigative reports on Robertson's charitable enterprises have found that some of money raised was used for less-than charitable purposes. Since he purchased the refinery, several obstacles have prevented the project from getting underway. These barriers, Robertson claims, has cost him tens of millions of dollars. Early on, Communities for a Better Environment (CBE), a twenty-three year old environmental health and justice organization with over 20,000 members throughout California got involved. CBE charged that Robertson's plans to reopen the 65-year-old refinery located southeast of downtown Los Angeles would "endanger the health and perhaps even the lives of tens of thousands of area residents -- many of them children." CBE noted that the previous owners of the refinery, "paid hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines for safety and pollution violations." Located in a largely Latino community, the refinery eventually was shut down in 1995. Last August, CBE filed a federal lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles which, according to the Los Angeles Times, alleged that "the city of Santa Fe Springs and the South Coast Air Quality Management District allowed the refinery's owners to skirt federally mandated environmental procedures in obtaining certain permits."
Mr. Pat goes to Washington In recent weeks, new developments have complicated the story. Associated Press reports that in late-June Robertson sought out liberal Democratic Senator Ron Wyden (D-Wash.) "suggesting the two might join in rooting out anti-competitive practices among the major oil companies." Sen. Wyden has been investigating the oil industry, and Robertson indicated that he thinks "his experience in trying to start up" the refinery "might provide the senators with additional fodder for investigation." Robertson, a strong supporter of President Bush, disagrees with the administration's assessment that the main cause behind the soaring gas prices, especially in California, is the "lack of refinery capacity." In his June 15 letter to Wyden, Robertson writes: "The uphill fight of a tiny independent against the behemoths controlling the oil industry has been extraordinarily difficult over these several years and has cost, in the process, tens of millions of dollars." Claiming that his efforts to restart the refinery have been "stymied," he pointed to "unnamed oil companies, including one executive who allegedly told a bank official that his oil company would take its business elsewhere if it financed Robertson's project." Robertson continued: "We were told that the head of a major oil company had sent word to the bank that if it helped finance the restart of the Powerine Refinery that the oil company would possibly withdraw its business." Robertson told the Associated Press that he was considering a lawsuit against the still unnamed oil companies. However, despite this setback, he expects to receive the funding needed for the project. Sen. Wyden told CBS News it is unfortunate that in a time when there is a need to increase refinery capacity that big oil companies would try to keep independent refiners from operating. And, Wyden added, "this is one of the cleanest refineries around and it's having difficulty getting into the business."
Robertson's fight for CENCO continues - the conspiracy spewing televangelist, well-connected politico, and successful businessman is united against the nettlesome oil industry and noisy and nosy environmentalists. Whatever the outcome, one thing is clear. The CENCO refinery will not be the answer to the prayers of Communities for a Better Environment and the local activists of Santa Fe Springs, California. Bill Berkowitz is an Oakland, California-based freelance writer covering the Religious Right and related conservative movements. |
Pat Robertson: Power broker in politics and business 
Right-wing media mogul Rupert Murdoch bought Robertson's media empire for $1.9 billion in 1997 
Christine Todd Whitman heads the EPA, which allowed Robertson's refinery business to avoid complying with the Clean Air Act 
© 1997-2002 BEI