Trump Praise for Exxon Follows Meeting With Tillerson, Ex-CEO
March 06 2017 - 10:25PM
Dow Jones News
By Rebecca Ballhaus
When President Donald Trump has singled out companies for praise
or criticism in the past, it has often raised the question: Why
those?
That was less so the case on Monday.
The White House at 3:43 p.m. issued an official statement
congratulating Exxon Mobil Corp. on its plan to invest $20 billion
expanding its manufacturing capabilities along the Gulf Coast.
"This is a true American success story," Mr. Trump said in a
statement that closely echoed Exxon's own press release, issued
half an hour earlier.
The White House statement quoted Exxon CEO Darren Woods and
cited the press release's figure that the jobs created by the new
investment would pay an average salary of $100,000. It also lifted
one paragraph on the program's background nearly word-for-word.
Less than four hours later, Mr. Trump followed up with some more
praise for the oil giant -- this time in video form. Calling Exxon
a "great company," he said the new investment was "something that
was done to a large extent because of our policies."
In fact, the company's "Growing the Gulf" program includes
investments that started in 2013, mirroring a growing pattern among
companies who fear the president's Twitter account of trumpeting
investment programs already underway.
What could have spurred the president's burst of enthusiasm for
Exxon? One possibility: an Oval Office meeting he held two hours
before issuing the statement with the company's former CEO --
Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.
Mr. Tillerson stepped down as chief executive of the company on
Jan. 1, taking with him a $180 million retirement package.
Mr. Trump's decision to tap the former Exxon CEO as his
secretary of state at the time raised questions about whether the
oil company -- which already spends millions lobbying the federal
government -- would see a heightened influence in Washington as a
result. One particular area of concern: the company's history of
lobbying the government on sanctions on Russia, which the company
has said hurt its business interests.
Mr. Tillerson in his confirmation hearing argued that neither he
nor his former company ever lobbied against U.S. sanctions on
Russia or Iran, though his company and its outside consultants have
filed more than 30 lobbying disclosure reports, listing sanctions
issues in Iran, Russia and Libya as among its issues.
A White House spokeswoman, asked whether Mr. Trump's praise of
Exxon suggested that he was trying to reward his secretary of
state's former company, responded: "Actually it's the other way
around. Exxon is giving America a boost by heavily investing in
creating good paying jobs right here at home."
The spokeswoman, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, added: "It's no secret
job creation is a top priority of the President, and when companies
make this type of commitment the administration will recognize
their efforts."
Indeed, Exxon is not the only company whose investment plans
have elicited praise from the president. Intel CEO Brian Krzanich
unveiled a planned $7 billion investment at the White House last
month, prompting Mr. Trump to tweet him a "thank you."
Exxon also donated $500,000 to Mr. Trump's inauguration fund in
December, less than a week after he officially named Mr. Tillerson
as his pick to head the State Department. In 2013, the company gave
half that amount to former President Barack Obama's inauguration
fund.
Yet even $250,000 was enough to draw Mr. Trump's scorn in 2013.
"Exxon donated $250g to Obama's inaugural," he tweeted that
January. "I guess the Democrats have no problem accepting money
from 'big oil.'"
--Felicia Schwartz contributed to this article.
Write to Rebecca Ballhaus at Rebecca.Ballhaus@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
March 06, 2017 22:10 ET (03:10 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2017 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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