As angry voters spark a barrage of energy bills in Congress, the oil industry is spending record amounts of money protecting its interests.
In what may be surprising to some, the most recent figures from the Center for Responsive Politics show that the oil industry gives a relatively small sum to individual political campaigns - it's 16th on a list of top 50 industries.
But when it comes to lobbying - and spending money that goes toward researching, writing and convincing lawmakers to vote its way - the industry ranks fifth. If the spending continues at the current pace, the industry is set to break last year's $83 million record.
"In the minds of most people, you rarely spend money to get nothing done," said Massie Riesch, communications director for CRP. "But in government, people often spend vast sums of money to make sure nothing happens at all."
