Perry: Don't speculate about oil spill
Legal News Feed
Texas Gov. Rick Perry said Tuesday it's not wise to speculate about what caused an explosion and massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, and he defended his use of the term "act of God" to describe the disaster.
Perry said Tuesday the phrase — which he used in a speech in Washington, D.C., on Monday when discussing the spill — is a legal definition and that his point is "nobody knows what happened" at the oil rig off the Louisiana coast. The undersea well has been spewing 200,000 gallons of oil a day.
The giant oil slick is threatening the Gulf Coast from southeastern Louisiana to Florida. Rig operator BP PLC has been trying unsuccessfully to cap the leak, which began April 20.
"If you will go look up the definition of 'Act of God,' we've used it in legal terms for a long time in this state," Perry told reporters outside the Texas Capitol.
"It may be an accident and it may be something else," he said.
The Democratic group Lone Star Project criticized the Republican governor's remarks as "detached arrogance."
"Eleven men died when the drilling platform exploded. Hundreds of miles of coastland could be damaged for years and even decades. The families of those who died and the victims of the environmental damage deserve a full accounting for the human errors that caused the failure at the rig, the death of loved ones and the spoiling of our Gulf coastline," said Matt Angle, director of Lone Star Project.
Related listings
-
Lawmakers call for restrictions on political ads
Legal News Feed 04/29/2010Lawmakers are urging Congress to move swiftly to put restrictions on corporate and union sponsorship of political campaign ads.They are seeking to counteract a January ruling by the Supreme Court which upheld the First Amendment rights of such groups...
-
Obama counsel on court choice: firmness, finesse
Legal News Feed 04/25/2010White House counsel Bob Bauer, President Barack Obama's point man in the search for a new Supreme Court justice, manages to get credit both for an even temperament and his finesse with a sledge hammer.The combination is evident in one of Bauer's favo...
-
Senate confirms Asian-American for appeals court
Legal News Feed 04/23/2010The Senate has voted 98-0 to confirm Judge Denny Chin to fill an opening on a New York-based appeals court. He will be the only Asian-American currently serving on a U.S. Court of Appeals.Chin is a U.S. district judge in New York. He will serve on th...
New York Commercial Litigation Law Firm - Woods Lonergan PLLC
Founded in 1993 by Managing Partner James F. Woods, Woods Lonergan PLLC has built a strong reputation as a resourceful and industrious firm that provides clients with clear, concise, and straightforward answers to their most challenging legal issues. Partner Lawrence R. Lonergan, who joined the firm in 2008, has been a friend and colleague to Mr. Woods for over 40 years and shares the same business philosophy. Woods Lonergan PLLC’s collective experience and expertise enables the firm to expeditiously and effectively analyze the increasing challenges clients face in an evolving business and legal world, in many instances, avoiding unnecessary time and expense to our clients. Our mission is simple: provide cutting-edge expertise and sound advice in select areas of the law for corporate and business clients. We thrive on providing each client with personalized attention, forceful representation, and a collaborative team effort that embraces collective knowledge.