Climate Politics
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Environmental regulations visible from space
We're learning a lot about space spiders and space bacteria from the nerd horde at the NASA tweetup, but somehow this one from Rachel Maddow writer Tricia McKinney is the most chilling. (She's citing astronaut Leland Melvin.) It's true:
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Nader: Obama’s guaranteed to win, so why not make him sweat?
Former Green presidential candidate — and former presumed Democratic spoiler — Ralph Nader doesn't plan to run again this time around. But that isn't keeping him from political machinations. Nader's plan for 2012: Obama's gonna win anyway, so why not put some pressure on him to move leftward? Obama's win is basically guaranteed, thanks to […]
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Why did environmentalists pursue cap-and-trade and was it a doomed strategy?
We’re starting to see pieces of counterfactual history on the climate bill in The New Republic and elsewhere based in part on a widely debunked “false narrative.” Since cap-and-trade has been so vilified by the entire right wing and even some on the left, I thought I would try to set the record straight on […]
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We’ve already slowed greenhouse-gas emissions
Given that the Republicans in power are clearly willing to go to the mat to make sure we make no further strides towards improving the environment, this is good news: Even if the government takes no further action to regulate greenhouse gases, our emissions will grow much more slowly than predicted in coming years. In […]
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Policy in an age of post-truth politics
Obama still doesn’t get it.Photo: White HouseAs Joe Romm noted the other day, Ezra Klein has an interesting column in WaPo making the case that, in terms of policy, Obama “is a moderate Republican of the early 1990s.” Putting aside the emergency measures responding to the economic crisis, Obama’s signature initiatives have been a health-care […]
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Ezra Klein: ‘Obama, based on his positions, is a moderate Republican of the early 1990s’
Klein writes, “as Democrats moved to the right to pick up Republican votes, Republicans moved to the right to oppose Democratic proposals.”Photo: The White HouseThe Washington Post‘s Ezra Klein has a terrific column that places the failed climate bill into the political context that has been missing from so much of the recent debate: If you put […]
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How Tim Pawlenty ditched his Arctic explorer bestie and turned his back on climate change
This is like something out of Mean Girls: Former Minnesota gov Tim Pawlenty used to pal around with this amazing Arctic explorer dude, Will Steger, having slumber parties and plotting how to get the GOP to believe in climate change. Then Pawlenty fell in with a clique, the GOP Presidential Hopefuls, and if he wanted […]
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Opponents of climate bill far outspent environmentalists, according to Climate Shift data
The data suggest opponents of climate legislation far outspent environmentalists during debate over the bill in 2009 and 2010: 8-to-1 on lobbying in 2009 4-to 1 (or more) on advertising in 2009 8-to-1 in donations to candidates and Congress members in 2010 cycle 10-to-1 on independent election expenditures in 2010 I am basing those numbers […]
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What would happen if Americans had a say in how their tax money is spent?
Lemme tell you …How would America change if taxpayers were allowed to specify how their tax money were spent? That fascinating question (no, really, it’s fascinating!) is explored in a piece by Cait Lamberton in the latest issue of Democracy: A Journal of Ideas. Side note: if you don’t read Democracy, you really should bookmark […]
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Power Shift recap: ‘Stuck on stupid,’ money pollution, and Snuffleupagus
Are you rallying in D.C. right now for the Power Shift 2011? You're NOT? Well, lucky for you we've been posting highlights over the weekend. Here's what you missed, you poor sap: Former White House advisor Van Jones wants to hold both parties to high standards, but he's not sure they'll live up to it. […]
