Steyer Slams Chevron, Xavier Becerra for Ripping off Working Californians

“I’m standing in front of the Chevron station because Chevron is Xavier Becerra’s biggest supporter.”

OAKLAND — Today, Democratic gubernatorial candidate and climate advocate Tom Steyer gave remarks and answered questions from the press at a Chevron gas station. In a tight race that comes down to a Republican extremist, a corporate-backed Democrat, and a progressive Democrat, Chevron has been working to tip the scales for their preferred candidate, Xavier Becerra. Steyer tore into Becerra for being beholden to Big Oil, calling out a $500,000 contribution Chevron made just last week to back his candidacy, on top of maxing out to his campaign directly. 

Steyer’s remarks are below:

I’m standing in front of the Chevron station because Chevron is Xavier Becerra’s biggest supporter.

And it’s unbelievable that the leading oil company in California, which is actually based in Houston, Texas, is openly supporting one of the leading candidates for California governor, that seems absolutely impossible, but it's true.

And when you think about what Chevron is doing, gouging people at the pump, charging $1 more than other oil companies per gallon of gas, where they are polluting our air and causing climate change, and they are absolutely supporting a governor's candidate who has no environmental policy on his website. 

If we have Chevron running environmental policy, that is an absolute travesty. 

And if we have a candidate, Xavier Becerra, who, as Attorney General, took oil money and then declined to prosecute Exxon Mobil, that is a travesty. 

The truth is, it's time for California to move to clean energy. 

It's time for us to lead the world. 

It's time for us to put money back in the pockets of people who have to fill up at the pump, and it's time to put money back in the pockets of people who are paying twice as much as they should for electricity. 

So, that's what this race is about. 

Are we going to give in to the corporations or the people of California going to take back the reins and drop the costs and take on the corporations? 

I'm the person who's fighting for that, and that's the only thing I will fight for ever.

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Chevron’s history of price-gouging its consumers is well-known, as is the fact that the company up-charges California consumers by .60-.80 cents per gallon on average.

In contrast, Steyer has spent over a decade taking on Big Oil and winning —  beating Big Oil at the ballot box and securing nearly $2 billion for clean energy in schools. And he’s released a comprehensive plan to bring down costs for Californians by expanding clean energy innovation and making polluters pay.

Tom is endorsed by prominent climate experts and environmental champions, including: Sierra Club, NRDC Action Fund, California Environmental Voters, Center for Biological Diversity Action Fund, Bill McKibben, Climate Center Action Fund, and Jane Fonda. 

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