Several GOP lawmakers are urging the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) internal watchdog to investigate and identify the source of leaks suggesting that Pioneer Natural Resources CEO Scott Sheffield broke the law.
Republican Reps. August Pfluger of Texas, H. Morgan Griffith of Virginia and Jeff Duncan of South Carolina wrote to FTC Inspector General Andrew Katsaros on Nov. 19, calling on him to figure out which FTC employee or employees told the media that the agency would likely refer Sheffield to the Justice Department for potential prosecution.
The FTC voted in May to block Sheffield from joining ExxonMobil’s board of directors after the energy giant acquired his company because the agency alleges Sheffield attempted to collude with OPEC to restrict oil supply to bolster his company’s profits.
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“These matters must remain confidential to protect the subjects of such investigations, as subjects can be innocent, never prosecuted, and would be harmed by similar leaks,” the lawmakers wrote. “If FTC officials or their staff are willing to leak information regarding highly sensitive matters, like criminal investigations, it calls into question if they can be trusted with the vast amounts of business sensitive information they obtain through compulsory means every day.”
“The FTC [office of the inspector general’s (OIG)] mission is to prevent and detect fraud, waste, and abuse, as well as promote efficiency and effectiveness in FTC programs and operations,” they continued. “Leaks of sensitive information, as well as inadequate investigations, are abuses of power by FTC, an institution in which the American people have placed a significant amount of trust. As the Inspector General, you must ensure and uphold the integrity of the FTC. We urge the OIG to take action and conduct an investigation regarding this matter.”
The leak about a referral for Sheffield was published in The Wall Street Journal and other media outlets, the lawmakers wrote in their letter. The letter also notes that the FTC’s commissioners testified to Congress in July that they do not know who leaked the information about Sheffield and that those disclosures are not aligned with FTC policy.
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While the FTC has asserted that Sheffield tried to collude with foreign energy producers to boost his bottom line at the expense of Americans paying for gas at the pump, others have characterized that suggestion as a bad-faith smear targeting Sheffield based on the publicly-available information the FTC used to substantiate its case.
At the time of Sheffield’s alleged indiscretions, energy prices were skyrocketing globally and domestically, forcing President Joe Biden to ask foreign oil producers to increase their production to tame prices. Notably, Sheffield also called out the Biden administration’s regulatory hostility to the fossil fuel industry in an October 2021 interview with Financial Times.
ExxonMobil purchased Pioneer for nearly $60 billion, finalizing the transaction in May.
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