The Supreme Court gives Big Oil a break

Messing up and getting away with it is a hallmark of the Bush administration.

And now the Supreme Court is letting big oil get away with their own reckless mess with a slap on the wrist rather than the vigorous spanking they deserve.

Yesterday, in a 5-3 decision related to Exxon Mobil's responsibility in the Exxon Valez disaster, the Supremes reduced the original $5 billion punitive damages award against Exxon Mobil down to about $500 million. So now they only have to pay about one-tenth of the original amount.

At least Justice Samuel Alito had the integrity to recuse himself from the case because he owns Exxon stock.

By the way, according to the Associated Press, first-quarter profits at Exxon Mobil Corp. were $10.9 billion. The company's 2007 profit was $40.6 billion.