The only attorney general willing to aggressively investigate Exxon Mobil and affiliated groups completely backed down from his final subpoena of one of these groups Thursday.
U.S. Virgin Islands Attorney General Claude Walker withdrew his final subpoena against the Competitive Enterprise Institute, a free-market group that received funding from Exxon Mobil. Walker had issued a subpoena in Washington, D.C. that was withdrawn in May, but had left a second subpoena filed in the U.S. Virgin Islands pending.
Walker announced Wednesday he was withdrawing a subpoena against Exxon Mobil.
In a statement, the Competitive Enterprise Institute said the decision was a victory for freedom of speech and the group would continue to pursue sanctions against Walker.
“The withdrawal of this subpoena is a victory for all Americans who value the right to support causes they believe in, but Walker broke the law when he subpoenaed CEI, and he must be held to account,” the group said in a statement.
“We continue to pursue sanctions against Walker because of his flagrant violation of the First Amendment,” she added. “Justice is still needed so that Americans do not have to fear intimidation when they disagree with government officials.”
Walker was working with 17 Democratic attorneys general who promised to use their powers to go after Exxon Mobil for possibly covering up how the burning of fossil fuels influences climate change decades ago.
The attorneys general based their investigations on a series of articles published by Inside Climate News, the Los Angeles Times and other news outlets that reported the company had covered up findings by Exxon’s own scientists that showed manmade climate change was warming the Earth and creating risks for the company.
The company adamantly denies the charges, and is asking several courts to level injunctions against the attorneys general for violating the company’s rights under the Constitution.
