FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March
27, 2001
LIEBERMAN
SEEKS ENRON CONTACTS
FROM WHITE
HOUSE, ENERGY TASK FORCE
Also
Seeks Contacts Between Agencies and White House
WASHINGTON - As part of his ongoing investigation into
whether federal regulatory agencies could have done more to
protect the thousands of people who suffered as a result of
Enron’s collapse, Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman
Joe Lieberman, D-Conn., Wednesday called upon the White House
to disclose contacts it had with the failed company.
In letters dated Wednesday, March 27, 2002, Lieberman
asks the White House and the U.S. Archivist for all
communications with Enron, dating back to 1992, regarding
eight agencies, communications with any federal agency
regarding the eight agencies, and contacts with Enron
regarding the national energy policy.
The agencies are: The Securities and Exchange
Commission, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the Departments of
Labor, Energy and Commerce, the Export Import Bank, and the
Overseas Private Investment Corporation.
Lieberman also sent letters to members of the Vice
President’s energy task force asking for their contacts with
Enron regarding the national energy policy.
The requests cover both the Clinton and George W. Bush
administrations.
“As our inquiry into the Enron debacle has unfolded,
we've learned that too many watchdogs failed to bark, ”
Lieberman said. “I
will not hesitate to ask for anything that helps us to
investigate as thoroughly as possible what the federal
government might have done to prevent, or at least anticipate,
Enron’s demise, and whether there are steps we can take to
avoid another corporate failure of this magnitude in the
future. A broad inquiry of this sort demands that contacts between
the White House and these agencies be reviewed.”
The expanded request comes on the heels of
Lieberman’s examination into the role played by various
regulatory agencies and private sector watchdogs.
He has presided over four hearings that included probes
of the 401(k) retirement issue, and of the failure of the
Wall Street analysts and credit rating agencies to
anticipate Enron’s collapse.
On February 15, the Committee subpoenaed Enron and
Arthur Andersen LLP for their contacts with the SEC, FERC,
CFTC, and DOL. Those
agencies were also asked for their contacts with Enron.
Subsequently, on March 22, the Committee authorized
subpoenas for Enron and Andersen for additional information
concerning Enron’s communications with the White House about
the aforementioned eight agencies.
Subpoenas were also authorized for 27 past and current
members of Enron’s Board of Directors for their
communications with the White House about the eight agencies
and about the Vice President’s energy task force.
The Committee’s Permanent Subcommittee on
Investigations, meanwhile, has issued 51 subpoenas in an
effort to discover what business practices may have
contributed to the company’s demise.
Lieberman
Letters to White House, Energy Task Force, Agencies for Enron
Contacts
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