A normally raucous affair teeming with protesters, angry shareholders and police officers, Exxon's meeting is expected to draw more attention than usual this year.


Stung by gasoline prices that have topped $3 a gallon, consumer groups are accusing the world's largest publicly traded oil company of profiting off the backs of hapless motorists.

U.S. lawmakers have joined in the act and are threatening to impose special windfall taxes on the company's profits. Those profits totaled a handsome $36 billion last year -- the most profitable year ever for a U.S. company.