Climate Politics
All Stories
-
Kerry-vs.-Bingaman power struggle lurks beneath ‘what next?’ question in Senate
Sens. Kerry, Lieberman, and GrahamPhoto: Wonk RoomIn the wake of health care reform passage, the question du jour seems to be: what next? The Senate doesn’t have a ton of time before mid-term elections bring Silly Season (not that any season is free of silliness in the Senate). A number of issues are tapping on […]
-
Coalition of 22 Democratic senators urges floor vote on climate bill this year
Now that health care reform is out of the way (praise f’ing Zeus!), what’s next for the Senate? Several issues are jockeying for attention: jobs, financial reform, immigration, and others. More than one senator has said that there’s just no time to get to climate and energy this year, especially after the protracted and divisive […]
-
Passage of healthcare security bill gives momentum to bipartisan climate and energy security bill
The success of health reform creates momentum for Democrats that is almost certain to help advocates of climate change legislation. So begins the EnergyGuardian story (subs. req’d) by reporter and Fox News contributor Jeffrey Birnbaum. Similarly, BusinessGreen reports: The chances of US climate change legislation passing this year received a major boost after President Obama secured victory in his historic […]
-
The inevitable ‘What Does Health Care Reform Mean for Climate Legislation’ post
Health care reform has passed and Obama will sign it into law Tuesday. By the end of the week, most experts forecast at least twelve katrillion thumbsucking “what does health care reform mean for X” pieces. This is one of them. Barack Obama and Joe Biden react to health care voteWhite House First, politics aside, […]
-
Why aren’t climate scientists talking about healthcare reform?
Health care reform dominates the news as Dems struggle to push their reform package through Congress. I applaud the effort, but can’t help wondering why climate change is being left out of the debate. Research shows that climate change is harmful to our health, raising rates of cancer and of respiratory and neurological diseases. So […]
-
Why we shouldn’t bury bluefin tuna just yet
The mighty bluefin: Are rumors of its death at least slightly exaggerated? “Nations free to fish bluefin tuna to extinction,” thundered Tom Laskawy’s headline on Grist. On the Politics of the Plate blog, Barry Estabrook’s title was more concise: “Bye-bye bluefin.” They were reacting to the decision by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered […]
-
Open letter to Sens. Kerry, Graham, and Lieberman: a bipartisan path forward on energy and climate
Sens. Kerry, Graham, and Lieberman, Thank you for the work you’re doing to to address America’s climate and energy challenges. As you meet with a broader group of stakeholders and begin to structure a bill, you face an enormous challenge of your own: crafting legislation that can get 60 votes in a fractured and somewhat […]
-
Coalfield protesters want to know when EPA chief will visit Appalachia
Protesters locked themselves to 20-foot purple mountains outside the EPA.Photo: Rainforest Action NetworkRisking arrest, activists from the besieged Appalachian coalfield regions and their supporters from across the country have set up and locked themselves to two 20-foot purple mountains majesties in front of Lisa Jackson’s office at the EPA headquarters in Washington, D.C., to call […]
-
Outline of Kerry-Graham-Lieberman appears to hew to Obama’s clean energy principles
Cross-posted from the Wonk Room. Photo: Wonk RoomDetails of the comprehensive green economy legislation being negotiated by a bipartisan trio of senators are leaking out, as draft language nears completion. In a meeting yesterday with a coalition of industry lobbyists, Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.), Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), and Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) unveiled an […]
-
Blanche Lincoln’s dismal school-lunch bill
Blanche Lincoln, chair of the Senate Ag Committee. Tight purse strings for kids and conservation; loose ones for large-scale farmers. Remember when Obama rolled out his proposal for increasing the school-lunch budget, and lots of folks, including me, groaned that it wasn’t nearly enough? In his budget proposal earlier this year, Obama called for an […]
