As BP Attempts to Stop the Well, PR Disaster Continues

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You can find the latest on environmental politics over on Blue Marble. Here are the most recent headlines:

Environment Makes a Comeback (Except Among Republicans)

In the wake of the BP disaster, Americans now say that the environmental considerations should take precedent over energy development. Well, at least Americans who aren’t Republicans.

BP Wants Cases Heard by Judge with Oil Ties

The oil giant has asked for a judge in Houston with significant ties to the oil industry to handle all the lawsuits against the company.

BP Spill Officially Worst In US History

The Gulf spill, now two to five times larger than previously estimated, has surpassed the Exxon Valdez as the worst in the United States. It may even make it on the list of worst oil disasters in world history.

Congressmen Press BP for More Answers

Henry Waxman wants to know why BP is hiding crucial information from House investigators. Trust me, you really don’t want to make Waxman mad.

Obama Faces Tough Questions on BP Spill

Five weeks into the Gulf disaster, Obama meets the press.

As BP Stops the Well, Other Problems Mount

The latest effort to stop the well seem to be working. But can BP stop the PR disaster still unfolding?

MMS Head Canned

Elizabeth Birnbaum, head of the beleaguered Minerals Management Service at the Department of Interior, takes the fall in the wake of the Gulf spill.

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WE'LL BE BLUNT

It is astonishingly hard keeping a newsroom afloat these days, and we need to raise $253,000 in online donations quickly, by October 7.

The short of it: Last year, we had to cut $1 million from our budget so we could have any chance of breaking even by the time our fiscal year ended in June. And despite a huge rally from so many of you leading up to the deadline, we still came up a bit short on the whole. We can’t let that happen again. We have no wiggle room to begin with, and now we have a hole to dig out of.

Readers also told us to just give it to you straight when we need to ask for your support, and seeing how matter-of-factly explaining our inner workings, our challenges and finances, can bring more of you in has been a real silver lining. So our online membership lead, Brian, lays it all out for you in his personal, insider account (that literally puts his skin in the game!) of how urgent things are right now.

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If you can right now, please support the journalism you get from Mother Jones with a donation at whatever amount works for you. And please do it now, before you move on to whatever you're about to do next and think maybe you'll get to it later, because every gift matters and we really need to see a strong response if we're going to raise the $253,000 we need in less than three weeks.

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