This is rather interesting:

Officials from six major oil companies have refused to testify this week
at a Senate hearing looking into whether oil industry mergers in recent
years have made gasoline more expensive at the pump.

With oil companies reporting record profits from higher energy prices,
consumer groups have complained that mergers in the industry have stifled
competition.

Exxon Mobil said on Monday it earned $10.7 billion in the fourth quarter
of last year and $36.1 billion for all of 2005 — bigger than the economies
of 125 countries.

The Senate Judiciary Committee, which is holding the hearing on Wednesday
morning, said it asked representatives from Exxon Mobil, Chevron,
ConocoPhillips, Valero Energy and the U.S. units of BP and Royal Dutch Shell
to tell their side of the story.

“All declined the invitation to testify,” the committee said in a
statement on Monday, without providing details

Article continues

here.

I guess they are afraid without Ted Stevens holding the gavel that they might
actually have to testify under oath and risk perjury. Of course if they would of
been sworn in last November, then they would be facing perjury charges after
they flat out lied to Senate about meeting with Dick Cheney.