A White House statement congratulating ExxonMobil for increasing investment in Texas and Louisiana cribbed multiple lines from the oil giant’s statement without citation.
The White House statement, which includes quotes from President Donald Trump, pulled this quote nearly word-for-word from ExxonMobil ‘s statement:
“ExxonMobil is strategically investing in new refining and chemical-manufacturing projects in the United States Gulf Coast region to expand its manufacturing and export capacity. The company’s Growing the Gulf program consists of 11 major chemical, refining, lubricant and liquefied natural gas projects at proposed new and existing facilities along the Texas and Louisiana coasts. Investments began in 2013 and are expected to continue through at least 2022.”
Here is what ExxonMobil wrote:
“ExxonMobil is strategically investing in new refining and chemical-manufacturing projects in the U.S. Gulf Coast region to expand its manufacturing and export capacity. The company’s Growing the Gulf expansion program, consists of 11 major chemical, refining, lubricant and liquefied natural gas projects at proposed new and existing facilities along the Texas and Louisiana coasts. Investments began in 2013 and are expected to continue through at least 2022.”
The Washington Post was first to notice that aspects of the White House statement were plagiarized.
The White House statement also appeared to crib a quote from Darren Woods, chairman and chief executive officer of ExxonMobil, without citing the business leader.
“These jobs will have a multiplier effect, creating many more jobs in the communities that service these new investments,” Woods said in the Exxon statement.
“These jobs will have a multiplier effect, creating many more jobs in the community that service these new investments,” said the White House statement, without citing Woods.
A White House official admitted to pulling the lines from Exxon.
“The expansion program has many different components to it, and we went straight to the source for some of our information,” the official said in a statement.
The investment by ExxonMobil expands its refining and chemical manufacturing capacity along the Gulf Coast by investing $20 billion over 10 years and will be focused on 11 sites in Texas and Louisiana.