Hum the climax of the "1812 Overture" during this post...

And you get a feeling about just how much BIG OIL loves Dear Leader and just whose interests he is looking after.

Shell Profit Beats All Forecasts

Royal Dutch/Shell comfortably beat analysts' forecasts to report a 28 percent rise in first-quarter profits on Thursday, helped by surging oil prices and strong refining margins...

...

Shell's result follows similar strong, and forecast-beating, earnings earlier this week from larger European rival BP and U.S. oil major ConocoPhillips.

Echoing the experience of BP and ConocoPhillips, Shell's profit rise was mainly down to bumper earnings at its exploration and production division and much better refining margins than expected.

The strong upstream performance came on the back of record oil prices, although lower output of hydrocarbons and higher costs, partly due to the weaker dollar, ate into earnings.

Shell said high oil prices would continue to buoy profits.

So many oil barons would love to be John McCain