Scott Sheffield, the former CEO of Pioneer Natural Resources, has urged the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to withdraw its opposition to his inclusion on Exxon's board of directors. Sheffield argues that federal regulators mischaracterized facts and wrongly vilified him, alleging he tried to collude with OPEC to prop up crude prices. He describes the FTC's actions as unjust and absurd, and claims the agency used him as a scapegoat in the Exxon-Pioneer merger. Sheffield has asked the FTC to vacate its order preventing him from joining the board, calling the ban a 'dangerous course'. The FTC conducted a six-month investigation into the Exxon-Pioneer merger.