Declarations
No Place to Hide
“Voters want leaders to stand tall on insurance reform …. Candidates cannot hide from this issue. Texans are looking for leaders to deliver results that will hold insurance companies accountable for their prices, coverage, and claims handling.”
—Alex Winslow, executive director of the Austin-based consumer advocacy group, Texas Watch Foundation, says a statewide public opinion survey revealed that an average of 74 percent of voters are likely to vote for candidates who favor real home insurance reforms. The survey, conducted by polling firm Hill Research Consultants on behalf of Texas Watch, showed an electorate divided between incumbent Republican Governor Rick Perry (42 percent) and Democratic challenger Bill White (41 percent), with a significant bloc of voters (14 percent) still uncommitted to either candidate. The survey of 600 Texas voters was conducted Aug. 25 – 29.
Imperiled Species
“The harmful effects of the BP oil well blowout on endangered and threatened wildlife will continue for many years. … We ask the court to compel BP to provide the resources necessary to ensure (that) imperiled species in the Gulf recover from this disaster.”
—Gregory Buppert, attorney for Defenders of Wildlife, one of the plaintiffs in a lawsuit filed against British-based oil giant BP Plc claiming the world’s worst offshore spill inflicted “ongoing unlawful” harm on endangered wildlife in the Gulf of Mexico. The suit is one of thousands of damages cases to stem from the spill from BP’s blown-out undersea Macondo well, which between April and July dumped millions of gallons of oil into the sea, fouling coastlines in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida. The well was capped in mid-July. The suit brought by conservation groups focuses on endangered sea turtles, whales, birds and Florida manatees. The Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC), the Gulf Restoration Network and the Save the Manatee Club joined the Defenders of Wildlife in the suit.
Always Exceptional
“It’s easy to forget the good times during times of adversity, but we need to remember that our unique experiment with democracy has produced greater prosperity for more people than any other system in the history of civilization.”
—David A. Sampson, president and CEO of the Property Casualty Insurers Association of America (PCI). At PCI’s recent annual meeting, Sampson told insurance CEOs and senior executives that America faces a struggle between two competing visions for the future – a choice between a free market system and an expanded federal government. He encouraged conference attendees to be “cautiously optimistic as America is a hopeful nation.” Sampson said that despite the widespread private sector anxiety over America’s future, the weak economic recovery, and the policy uncertainties out of Washington, America has always been exceptional.