Grist's coverage of Copenhagen climate talks

Before Copenhagen fades into memory I want to celebrate one of its lesser noted but more delightful chapters.

If you recall, Sen. James Inhofe (R-Okla.) was planning on rounding up some fellow senators and heading to Copenhagen as a “truth squad.” The “truth” he intended to impart to world leaders is that the U.S. Senate will never pass a climate bill.

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You might think it’s an extraordinary event, a sitting legislator traveling abroad specifically and explicitly to undermine his country’s president in an international negotiation. But you see, Inhofe’s a Republican and IOKYR so there was never any particular outcry.

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Thing is, Inhofe is a joke, nationally and internationally. No U.S. senator wanted to squander his or her credibility by traveling with Inhofe, so he ended up going alone. And when he got there, not a single government official from any nation was willing to appear with him, so he ended up speaking with a derisory coterie of reporters and … oh, just watch Rachel Maddow tell the story:

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Sometimes life tosses you a bone, you know?

UPDATE: Just for kicks, here’s a forlorn Inhofe with a COP15 afro:

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Inhofe with COP15 afro

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