Friday, August 24, 2007

Carlyle Hires Its Own Brownie


President George Bush had Michael Brown, now The Carlyle Group's energy and power subsidiary, Riverstone Holdings has Lord John Browne, formerly of BP as their new Managing Director and Managing Partner for Europe. Michael Brown had Lake Pontchartrain while Lord Browne had Prudhoe Bay. Micheal Brown allowed hospital patients to simmer in a toxic stew for up to five days. Lord Browne oversaw a company that underspent on safety, with numerous fatal accidents at its Texas City refinery.

Guess who headed up the private investigation into the BP refinery accident? That would be James Baker, also of The Carlyle Group. Guess what Brownie said after Baker's report?

"BP gets it, and I get it too," chief executive John Browne said yesterday in a teleconference with reporters. "I recognize the need for improvement."

So what did Lord Browne do to improve? The same article said "He now plans to leave in July and join a private equity firm." Join he did! It appears the upper crust takes good care of its own as the Baker investigation failed to cite any executives as responsible for the accident.

Leaving their friends out of reports isn't new. President Bush's White House Lessons Learned report after Hurricane Katrina omits the hospital with the largest number of patient deaths. Guess who purchased the facility weeks before landfall? That would be The Carlyle Group. Something stinks and its not getting better with time...