Citizens across America are feeling crushed beneath the weight of corruption perpetuated by big business creating a need for more public scrutiny of corporate power structures and more aggressive repercussions for misconduct.
ABC News reports, a Senate committee will hear next week from the CEO of Norfolk Southern, which was responsible for the East Palestine, Ohio, train derailment.
Shaw will appear before the Senate’s Environment and Public Works Committee on March 9.
A Norfolk Southern spokesperson said Shaw told the committee “that he will appear voluntarily …. We continue to engage in discussions with Members of Congress and other committees about additional requests to testify, while balancing his commitments to the remediation process and the community.”
During Monday’s floor remarks, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer called for Shaw’s appearance.
Schumer stated “ The American people should hear from Norfolk Southern CEO precisely why they thought it was a good idea to spend years lobbying to loosen regulations designed to prevent accidents like this, And I especially want to hear why Norfolk Southern, after seeing a record $3.3 billion in profits last year, prioritized billions in stock buybacks instead of putting that money towards safety and towards their workers.”
The committee has not yet formally notified the hearing, but other witnesses are expected to attend.
While the ecological disaster is still unfolding there are many others who are trying to get answers on just how bad this disaster is for East Palestine, and the rest of the country.
While Shaw has agreed to testify “voluntarily,” many are questioning if it is little more than a cover-up so Norfolk Southern can conveniently cover its tracks. Many fear that greed and corruption have conduced to create a toxic wasteland out of the Ohio town, where safety has taken a backseat to profits. It remains to be seen whether answers will be found, but what everyone does know for certain is that something needs to be done about this kind of collusion between industry and government.
