BP DOESN'T KNOW
INT. C-SPAN Broadcast: Congressional Hearing of BP
BP CEO TONY HAYWARD sits at the witness table. REP. BART STUPAK (D), REP. HENRY WAXMAN (D), and REP. JOE BARTON (R) are questioning him.
REP. BART STUPAK (D)
Mr. Hayward, thank you for returning here to answer questions about your company's oil spill. I'll remind you that even though the United States is not currently pressing charges, that this is a hearing and you are under oath.
BP CEO TONY HAYWARD
I understand.
STUPAK
First question, in your opinion was BP irresponsible in the creation of this oil well?
HAYWARD
Well, I'm not a technical engineer, so I'm actually not
qualified to make that assessment. I don't really know.
STUPAK
Well, in your opinion as a business executive. Was BP
irresponsible?
HAYWARD
It is really a technical assessment and so I must say with
respect that I do not know.
STUPAK
Fine, I'll move on. Seeing how much oil has spilled do you
wish that BP had taken more safety precautions with installing this well?
HAWYWARD
I don't know.
STUPAK
What do you mean, you don't know? Of you wish there was more
safety -- there is tons of oil spilling out of the ocean floor!
HAYWARD
Yes, but since I am not a time traveller I can't tell what
would have happened should we made more saftey precautions. Maybe those
precautions would have caused other problems. So I don't know.
WAXMAN
Mr. Hayward, here's an easy one -- are BP employees doing
everything they can to fix this spill?
HAYWARD
I don't know. I'm not a mind reader, am I? So maybe there are
workers who are daydreaming or goofing off and they could be doing more! Who
can say? Not me. I don't know.
WAXMAN
I'm trying to throw you a bone here, sir.
HAYWARD
I don't know that. What's a bone?
WAXMAN
What do you mean, what's a bone?
HAYWARD
I'm British, you're American. You're using an expression. I
can't be certain I understand it. I don't have the information. I don't know.
STUPAK
Mr. Hayward, the spill has been active for four months now.
HAYWARD
I don't know that.
STUPAK
Yes you do. We all know that.
HAYWARD
Well I'm not a calendar. I can't be certain how much time has
passed. Maybe we're all just figments of someone else's imagination. I don't
know.
WAXMAN
You know you're the kind of person I'd want to hit in the
face even if you hadn't broken the Earth.
HAYWARD
I don't know that.
WAXMAN
You don't know what?
HAYWARD
If I broke the Earth. Maybe we fixed it. Maybe there was too
much oil in it and we've let out the extra. I don't know.
BARTON
Mr. Hayward. I for one would like to apologize on behalf of
my colleagues. These questions are hostile and amount to what I would call a
shakedown.
HAYWARD
I don't know what a "shakedown" is.
BARTON
What do you mean?
HAYWARD
What is it? What's a shakedown?
BARTON
I don't know either. I'm just trying to blame the president for this somehow.
STUPAK
Look, Mr. Hayward, you must know something...
HAYWARD
I don't know that. I'm not a philosopher. What do men know?
STUPAK
You are the CEO of BP.
HAYWARD
I don't know that.
STUPAK
Yes, you do!
HAYWARD
I haven't looked at an org chart lately. Maybe I've been
fired! Seems like everyone's mad at me.
WAXMAN
Everyone IS mad at you.
HAYWARD
I don't know that.
WAXMAN
You just said they were.
HAYWARD
I'm not a court transcript.
STUPAK
Mr. Hayward, is there anything that you do in fact know.
HAYWARD stands and signs.
HAYWARD
"I believe the children are our future.
Teach them well and let them lead the way.
Show them all the beauty they possess inside"
STUPAK
Isn't that a Whitney Houston song?
HAYWARD
I don't know.