Donald Trump dangled a brazen “deal” in front of some of the top US oil bosses last month, proposing that they give him $1bn for his White House re-election campaign and vowing that once back in office he would instantly tear up Joe Biden’s environmental regulations and prevent any new ones, according to a bombshell new report.

According to the Washington Post, the former US president made his jaw-dropping pitch, which the paper described as “remarkably blunt and transactional”, at a dinner at his Mar-a-Lago home and club.

In front of more than 20 executives, including from Chevron, Exxon and Occidental Petroleum, he promised to increase oil drilling in the Gulf of Mexico, remove hurdles to drilling in the Alaskan Arctic, and reverse new rules designed to cut car pollution. He would also overturn the Biden administration’s decision in January to pause new natural gas export permits which have been denounced as “climate bombs”.

“You’ll get it on the first day,” Trump said, according to the Post, citing an unnamed dinner attendee.

  • noneya@lemmy.world
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    7 months ago

    Nothing like a good old fashioned quid pro quo resulting in the permanent destruction of the environment for an elderly sociopath who won’t be around to see the world burn, but hey…at least he won’t serve his final days on earth in jail.

    Even Trump’s legacy is bankrupt.

      • sik0fewl
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        7 months ago

        In a country where political bribery is legal and acceptable, might as well be up front about how much you want and for what.

  • SomeGuy69@lemmy.world
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    7 months ago

    If it’s legal to openly state this from a former president and possible future president, then you need to change your laws asap. Has to be born in america to even be able to become president, but openly admitting to accept bribery is fine?

    Who’s next? Some Epstein 2.0 donating $1b for rebuilding the island?

  • snekerpimp@lemmy.world
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    7 months ago

    I mean, this is reading like a damn Disney movie. Are we IN fern gully? Is his secret lair in a volcano surrounded by liquid hot magma?

    And everyone in that meeting is a huge, stinking pile of human excrement.

    • MagicShel@programming.dev
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      7 months ago

      I’m really disappointed in the low quality of super villain. I was told they would have evil lairs on the moon or the ocean floor, not a shabby club in Florida. I was told they would be charismatic visionaries with grandiose ambitions, not a salesman of sneakers and NFTs who just wants to abuse women unchecked.

      • mPony@lemmy.world
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        7 months ago

        Roger Waters - Too Much Rope

        When the sleigh is heavy and the timber wolves are getting bold

        You look at your companions and test the water of their friendship With your toe

        They significantly edge closer to the gold

        Each man has his price bub, and yours was pretty low

        History is short the sun is just a minor star

        The poor man sells his kidneys in some colonial bazaar

        Que sera sera is that your new Ferrari car

        Nice, but I think I’ll wait for the F50

        You don’t have to be a Jew to disapprove of murder

        Tears burn our eyes

        Muslim or Christian Mullah or Pope

        Preacher or poet who was it wrote

        Give any one species too much rope

        And they’ll fuck it up

  • notannpc@lemmy.world
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    7 months ago

    Obviously this kind of behavior should be illegal. And it’s not surprising at all to see it from Trump, especially with zero tact. But I particularly like how the writer pretends like the vast majority of US politicians aren’t also kissing the rings of the big oil industry.

    I’d wager most, if not all, people in this country have never lived outside of the direct influence of the oil barons. They have used their money and power to fuck us over at every possible opportunity if it means they get even more money and even more power.

  • enbyecho@lemmy.world
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    7 months ago

    I want to know what happens if they don’t quite make the $1 billion. I mean, that’s a lot of cash. What happens if they only donate, say, $750 million? $900 million. Is the quid pro quo pro rata?

    • realbadat@programming.dev
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      7 months ago

      To be fair these companies should generally be boycotted anyway, they all have been hindering progress for their profits.

      Kind of hard to do though. People need heat in their homes, gas for cars, etc.

        • girlfreddyOP
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          7 months ago

          But they’re not fighting for anything good. They just don’t want to be inconvenienced by having to change. The status quo has become their god.

  • Tylerdurdon@lemmy.world
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    7 months ago

    But did he let them grab his comb-over while slobbing on their knobs? You’ve got to show real commitment here, Donny.

  • mindbleach@sh.itjust.works
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    7 months ago

    Screaming the quiet part.

    Cannot fucking believe I ever tolerated reddit arguments about ‘it’s not quid pro quo!’