Lawson blasts Boyd for supporting offshore drilling

Following a meeting with the Tallahassee Democrat editorial board during which BP’s past support of him was discussed, Congressman Allen Boyd faces accusations that he is trying to distance himself from the oil giant responsible for the worst environmental disaster in American history.

In a press release, Congressional challenger Alfred “Al” Lawson cited a report by The Sunlight Foundation, a nonpartisan watchdog group, that connected Boyd with BP. The foundation recently compiled a list of members of Congress who held campaign fundraisers where lobbyists from BP were listed as hosts. The second name on that list was seven-term Congressman Allen Boyd.

The fundraiser cited by the Sunlight Foundation was held on June 25, 2008 at Charlie Palmer Steak in Washington DC. The invitation specifically solicited money from Political Action Committees (PACs). Official campaign finance records show that the Boyd for Congress campaign raised $6,500 on that day, all from PACs.

Campaign finance records also show that Congressman Boyd carried over more than $1 million from his 2008 account to be used in 2010.

In a July 27 Tallahassee Democrat article, Boyd carefully parsed his words, saying that he had never accepted money from BP or its executives. Boyd, however, refused to deny that he accepted money from a BP lobbyist.

“The only thing worse that Congressman Boyd taking money from a BP lobbyist is him now trying to cover it up,” said Lawson, who is challenging Boyd in the Democratic primary for Florida’s 2nd Congressional District.

Campaign finance records show that Boyd has accepted $62,200 from big oil interests since 1999.

In 2006, Congressman Boyd voted for the landmark offshore oil drilling bill, which opened up the federal waters where the Deep Horizons explosion occurred.

During his time in the Florida Legislature, Lawson has always opposed offshore oil drilling.