Ban Great Lakes Drilling
(This action alert is from Progress Michigan.)
When U.S. Rep. Joe Barton apologized to BP executives for the “shakedown” they suffered – meaning the money the reckless drilling company set aside to begin paying for their oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico – he wasn’t, as he later backpedaled, speaking only for himself.
He was speaking for all 114 members of the Republican Study Committee, a caucus for extreme right lawmakers that includes Michigan Congressman Pete Hoekstra. The caucus issued a press release in defense of BP, making it clear the group and its members — like Barton and Hoekstra — are on the side of Big Oil.
Pete turned his back on the people in Gulf by defending BP. He turned his back on the people of the Great Lakes, where BP has dumped waste and toxins. It’s only a matter of time before he offers BP the keys to the kingdom and tries to open the Great Lakes for drilling. Tell Pete and his pals we won’t stand for “Drill, baby, drill” in Michigan, by signing this petition and sharing it with others.
Grand Rapids Institute for Information Democracy 
I’ve lived in the Great Lakes region all my life (36 years) and will NOT see ANY of them ruined by greedy corporate oil pigs that can’t even fix (or WON’T fix, as the case may be) the massive screw-up in the Gulf that’s killing millions of wildlife and taking away the livelihood of the Gulf coast residents. CLEAN THAT UP AND FIX THAT!! DON’T TOUCH OUR GREAT LAKES!!!