The Growing Credibility Gap of Jon Powers
Statement by Davis Campaign Manager Luke Vaughn on Jon Powers’ Growing Credibility Gap
"Jon Powers and his campaign cannot be taken seriously. First, he flips, flops, and flails on key issues; then he takes money from his campaign to pay personal expenses in violation of federal law. Now he is knowingly regurgitating a false attack against Mr. Davis, without disclosing that he too holds stock in Exxon Mobil.
"Mr. Powers first launched this smear against Mr. Davis three weeks ago, but when reporters learned that Mr. Powers held stocks in the same companies, they declined to publish Mr. Powers’ attacks. Now Mr. Powers knowingly airs the same false attack, and again fails to disclose his own oil holdings.
"It’s just more politics as usual, from a typical politician with dismal poll numbers, inconsistent answers to serious questions, and more campaign cash from lobbyists, PACs, and strip club owners than every other candidate combined. Mr. Powers deliberately exaggerates Mr. Davis’ oil holdings, conceals his own, and also fails to disclose that he has accepted campaign contributions from oil and energy lobbyists. Mr. Powers is not “leading by example.”
"When Mr. Davis was about Mr. Powers’ age, he started his own company, and his retirement account contains Mr. Davis earnings from running that company over the past 40 years. It’s Jack’s money, earned with sweat, diligence, and backbreaking work. To attack it is simply childish and flies in the face of reality.
"Rather than envy and attack Mr. Davis’ success, Mr. Powers should stop launching false smears, and support the only candidate who has created jobs, balanced budgets, and gotten things done for working men and women in our community."
The following is a factual recitation of Mr. Powers’ own oil and energy holdings.
On his own Financial Disclosure Statements, filed with the Clerk of the House, Mr. Powers details assets in an array of stocks and funds. A closer inspection of each holding reveals that Mr. Powers has many holdings in oil companies, including Exxon Mobil, Chevron, Enron, China Oilfield Services, Chesapeake Energy Corporation and dozens of others.
First, there is his investment in the Schwab 1000 Index Fund (SWPIX). As of May 31, 2008 (around the time Mr. Powers filed his Financial Disclosure), the following are the top five holdings of the fund.
Exxon Mobil
General Electric
AT+T
Microsoft
Chevron
Second, Mr. Powers holds shares in the William Blair International Growth Fund (WBIGX). According to their March, 2008 quarterly review they either added or previously held shares in the following companies involved in oil, coal, and gas production:
KNM Group (Malaysian company) oil, gas and mining equipment
Mitsubishi (Japan) coking coal, and LNG (liquefied natural gas) industries
MMX Mineracao e Metalicos (Brazil) oil & gas exploration, logistics, and power plants.
Noble Group (Hong Kong) coal
Acergy (Norway) deep sea drilling
BHP Billiton is the world’s largest mining company.
Petroleo Brasilierio (Brazil) energy production and exploration company.
Third, Mr. Powers holds shares in the William Blair Small Cap Growth Fund (WBSIX). According to their 2007 annual report, they managed holdings in oil companies like:
Cairn Energy plc (United Kingdon) Oil, gas & consumable fuels
Cairn India Ltd. (India) Oil, gas & consumable fuels
China Oilfield Services Limited (China) Energy equipment & services
Schoeller-Bleckmann Oilfield Equipment AG (Germany) Energy equipment & services
Tullow Oil plc (United Kingdom) Oil, gas & consumable fuels
Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. (Brazil) Oil, gas & consumable fuels
BG Group plc (United Kingdom) Oil, gas & consumable fuels
In addition, in their March 31, 2008 quarterly report, Blair reports one other interesting holding, cited as one of their Significant Contributors to (portfolio) Return:
j2 Global Communications provides outsourced, value‐added messaging and communications services to individuals and businesses, with a network spanning 2,800 cities in 40 countries
Fourth, Mr. Powers holds shares in the Fidelity Capital & Income Fund (FAGIX). As of March 31, 2008, the fund’s top ten holdings included Chesapeake Energy Corporation, described in their literature as:
Chesapeake Energy Corporation, an oil and natural gas exploration and production company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, and development of properties for the production of crude oil and natural gas from underground reservoirs. As of December 31, 2007, it had 10.879 trillion cubic feet equivalent of proved reserves; and also owned interests in approximately 38,500 producing oil and natural gas wells.
The fund also has holdings in . . . Enron . . . and dozens of holdings in other smaller oil and gas companies.
Finally, Mr. Powers has direct IRA holdings in Global Industries, LLC. Their mission statement is:
Global Industries provides affordable solutions for the offshore oil and gas industry to meet the energy needs of the world while safeguarding our people and maximizing our profitability.
Jon Powers is running a desperate campaign. Down in the polls, flip-flopping on core issues and running out of time, he is launching misleading attacks against the only candidate who has the real-world economic credentials to fix our economy, and the proven independence to stand up to the special interests in Washington.