If Environmental Defense, of which the Easley administration is a wholly owned subsidiary, has serious problems with Exxon, the company must be doing something right. The letter below was sent out by ED. The direct links to ED sites where donations can be made have purposely been left out.

Donate now to help counter ExxonMobil’s campaign of disinformation

Thanks to supporters like you, we are half way to our goal of raising $250,000 to implement our Fight Global Warming Action Plan. If you have not yet donated to this important campaign, I urge you to donate right away.

. The momentum for global warming action is growing nationwide, but we face powerful opponents who are determined to prevent Congress from passing meaningful legislation to decrease global warming pollution.

Chief among our opponents is “Big Oil” giant ExxonMobil. As the world’s most powerful, most profitable, most polluting oil company, ExxonMobil claims that it is a leader of global warming research. But what Exxon doesn’t want you to know is that it has spent millions of dollars to convince the public and members of Congress that the science on global warming remains uncertain. That’s why I need your help to set the record straight. Your urgent donation will help vigorously counter ExxonMobil’s campaign of disinformation. We will match their professional lobbyists with the voices of real Americans; we will respond to their op-eds and glossy ads with our own media outreach; and we will circulate peer-reviewed scientific studies to rebut their junk science.

Blowing Smoke
The warnings from climate scientists are loud and clear: we have to cut global warming pollution ? and we must start now. ExxonMobil doesn’t want you to heed this warning ? and, as an Environmental Defense investigation reveals, ExxonMobil’s cynical PR strategy is designed to make sure you don’t. ExxonMobil has poured millions of dollars into think tanks and PR firms to promote self-proclaimed “experts” to sow doubt and confusion in the minds of the public, the media and policy-makers. Exxon-funded outfits like the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) liken the danger posed by global warming to that of “an alien invasion.” CEI has twice sued the U.S. government to stop it from distributing a report showing the sobering evidence of climate change in the United States. And then there’s the climate-doubting Marshall Institute, which claims that its mission is “to encourage the use of sound science in making public policy,” but which doesn?t reveal that its CEO is a registered lobbyist for ExxonMobil.

Speaking Truth to Power
With your help, here’s what we plan to do:
Set the record straight: Scientists are warning that “urgent and strenuous” cuts in greenhouse gas emissions are needed ? starting now. We are reaching out to the media and to the scientific community to counter ExxonMobil’s deceptions. More importantly, we are sounding the alarm and stepping up the pressure on our lawmakers to take decisive action.

Mobilize citizen action:
Already tens of thousands of online activists have sent messages to ExxonMobil’s new CEO Rex W. Tillerson demanding that the company stop using its vast resources to cloud public debate. Like any other consumer company, ExxonMobil depends on public goodwill for its long-term success. They can’t ignore us forever.

Demand leadership on Capitol Hill
With your support, Environmental Defense Action Fund is working in the states and on Capitol Hill to pass the McCain-Lieberman Climate Stewardship and Innovation Act. It’s the only legislation ever introduced in Congress that sets a hard cap on America’s global warming pollution ? and its passage is critical if we hope to unleash powerful economic incentives to create new, cleaner energy.

Your urgent donation will help us meet our $250,000 goal and give us the resources to make sure Congress gets the real message ? not the ExxonMobil message ? and takes meaningful action to fight global warming. Thank you for all you do!

Fred Krupp