Insidery capitol mag The Hill has a special section on "going green." There’s some amusing stuff.
First, it’s nice to see a couple of members of Congress exposing the travesty that is corn ethanol.
Seattle’s own Rep. Dave Reichert has a hilariously poorly written essay on why Republicans should go green. It starts like this:
America has come to a consensus. The American people want to protect the environment.
OMG! Really?!
Suspiciously, Reichert never offers a theory about why Republicans have come to be so anti-environment. I recommend, for reference, he check out Jonathan Chait’s new book The Big Con.
Speaking of: Sen. Pete Domenici (R-N.M.) says that the Senate energy bill rulez and the House bill droolz. He says removing the huge tax breaks for oil and gas companies put in place by the 2005 energy bill amounts to a "tax increase" and "punitive costs" that will hurt the consumer. Indeed, we should be encouraging oil and gas exploration in the U.S. Presumably by showering the most profitable industry in the world with taxpayer money. Ah, conservatism!
Speaking of conservatism, Sen. James Inhofe (R-Mongo) says that nuclear power rules, but in order for any private investor to get near it, the government has to insure a market, defray the costs, take on the risks, etc. etc. Because that’s the free market way!
