"BP is England's star in the world of energy. It also does a lot towards supporting their economy. "thousands of Britons are invested in the British oil giant through pension funds -- analysts estimate that about 1 pound in every 7 pounds paid in dividends to British pension funds comes from BP."
To put BP under would mean driving a US stake through the heart of voters in England who would wonder should we really be backing the US in world politics? Is this how loyalty is repaid by the Americans?
"Alan Smith, chief executive of Capital Asset Management, a London-based financial planning firm, said that "pretty much every pension fund in the country owns BP shares."
This mornings headline is Fitch concerns over British debt. Well they pay that debt in part with BP revenues. Other headlines on the drop in the value of the pound. If someone isn't talking to the President about world fiscal inbalances and BP they will be. There will be political grand standing by the President, there will be anger on the Larry King show, but Obama is also running the trillion dollar risk to increasing the political and economic Gulf between the US and Great Britain."