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The two most important questions that both critics and supporters of Waxman-Markey must answer

First, is the Waxman-Markey climate and clean energy bill compatible with – indeed integral to – a national and international effort to keep global warming as close as possible to 2°C? Second, what would be the outcome if the bill failed? This is the basis of the 500-word post at Yale e360, in which they […]

Nobelist Krugman takes on the “fantasists” of the “burn-baby-burn crowd”

Nobel prize-winning NYT columnist Paul Krugman has been doing some terrific writing on the economics of climate action (see Climate action “now might actually help the economy recover from its current slump” by giving “businesses a reason to invest in new equipment and facilities” and “Krugman strongly endorses Waxman-Markey“). Now he writes on Friday’s important […]

The top 10 ways the House GOP are like my two-year-old daughter

The idea for this Father’s Day post came when I was putting my daughter to bed a few weeks ago, and she started to repeat, “Want tiny dog” – one of her favorite stuffed animals.  The room was dark, and so I asked, “Is tiny dog in the crib?”  to which she replied, “Not yet” […]

MacCracken: “The New York Times quote did not represent my views”

When we last left the New York Times, they were burying the exclusive they got on climate science impacts report that NOAA Administrator Jane Lubchenco called a “game changer” (see Memo to White House: The NYT buried the “exclusive” you gave them on the landmark U.S. climate impacts report). [It was, of course, purely a […]

Cathy Zoi confirmed as the Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy

I’ve just been forwarded this message from DOE: On June 19th, the United States Senate, by voice vote, confirmed Cathy Zoi to be the Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy This is a terrific piece of news.  To explain why, I’m going to reprint below my March post “And Obama gives the best […]

National climate change policy: A quick look back at Waxman-Markey and the road ahead

Like any legislation, the Waxman‑Markey bill has its share of flaws, but its cap-and-trade system has medium and long‑term targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions that are sensible, and the cap‑and‑trade system is — for the most part — well designed. With some exceptions, the bill’s cap‑and‑trade system will achieve meaningful reductions of carbon dioxide […]

After Precarious Climate Vote, Grassroots Pressure Needed More Than Ever

With right-leaning Dems holding the upper-hand right now, it will take a monster grassroots push to counter corporate interest pressure and allow us to strengthen the Waxman-Markey bill.

Costs kill Ontario’s new nukes

It all started so well. Almost exactly three years ago, Ontario’s government announced the construction of two new nuclear reactors to replace ageing parts of our current power supply. Despite the drawbacks of being announced in the middle of summer vacation season and happening in Ontario, it nonetheless made news around the world. This was […]

The House climate bill debate, in one minute

Grist sat through roughly six hours of debate of the climate bill on Friday, and if you were watching or following our live blogging of it, you know how painful it got at times. For those who want to see the short version of Friday’s debate, Progressive Media USA put together a one-minute summary of […]

Why we overestimate the costs of climate change legislation

Recent days have seen a flurry of blogospheric back-and-forth about the new CBO and EPA reports, and more generally about the costs and benefits of climate change legislation. As someone who believes the costs are overestimated and the benefits underrated, I thought I’d weigh in. Here are three key questions: How available and affordable are […]