Climate Politics
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Is China winning the clean energy race?
Photo: Elizabeth Thomsen Today, in global talks, in the Senate, on the street, you still hear a murmur here and there about “not doing anything until India and China sign on.” And this previously pervasive attitude, however obsolete, may already be coming back to bite industrialized nations. Indeed, the big honchos in the West may […]
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[UPDATED] Sen. Bernie Sanders cries “monopoly” in a collapsing milk market
Got milk monopoly? UPDATE: Ask and ye shall receive. In a NYT article last Saturday, describing the considerable resistance anti-trust chief Christine Varney is already experiencing in her attempt to toughen enforcement, came this nugget: At the request of some lawmakers, notably Senator Bernard Sanders, independent of Vermont, Ms. Varney is examining whether small agricultural […]
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The Climate Post: Pools of oil, plumes of gas
First Things First: The Washington-to-Beijing diplomatic shuttle shows no sign of slowing down. Energy Secretary Steven Chu and Commerce Secretary Gary Locke visited China this week to prod collaboration on clean energy technology. Chu announced the U.S. would contribute $15 million to a partnership that will study how to capture carbon dioxide emissions and trap […]
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The three things Cass Sunstein should do on his first day
Cass Sunstein.After some minor drama, it looks like Cass Sunstein is finally on the road to confirmation for director of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) after being nominated by President Obama in January. The Senate should schedule a vote as soon as possible so he can get to work. As I’ve mentioned […]
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Racism allegations mar Senate hearing on clean energy economy
Thursday’s Senate Environment and Public Works Committee on climate change blew up into an argument over race between Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) and the chairman of the National Black Chamber of Commerce. NBCC’s Harry Alford was invited to speak at the hearing titled, “Ensuring and Enhancing U.S. Competitiveness while Moving toward a Clean Energy Economy.” […]
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The case for a national building energy code
Recently, there has been a good deal of media attention given to building energy codes, generally and specifically, the codes provision of the American Clean Energy and Security Act (ACES), both good and bad. A couple of these articles piqued my interest by asking if building energy codes should be a matter of federal importance […]
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USDA may get Dennis Wolff for food safety post because Gov. Ed Rendell doesn’t want him anymore
Wolff at the Dickinson College farm in Pennsylvania.Here’s a little rumor-mongering for fun, if not profit. Yes, as Tom Philpott reported, Dennis Wolff is for sure heading the list of candidates for the top food safety post at the USDA. But that’s not the fun part. The fun part involves the reason Dennis Wolff is […]
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34 Nobel winners write Obama about lack of support for energy R&D in climate/energy bill
This letter was sent to the White House on July 16: The Honorable Barack H. ObamaPresident of the United States1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NWWashington, DC 20500 Dear Mr. President: You have repeatedly and appropriately called for a Clean Energy Technology Fund of $150 billion over ten years that could be funded from receipts collected from a […]
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Big Ag not content with concessions in House climate bill
The American Farm Bureau Federation, not content with the major concessions for agriculture that its congressional allies secured during the House climate debate, is now lobbying the Senate for a better deal. Appearing at a hearing of the Environment and Public Works Committee on Tuesday, Farm Bureau President Bob Stallman not only pushed for provisions […]
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Solving obesity all depends on what you mean by the word “solve”
Ezra Klein, WaPo blogger and now food columnist, has, of late, been particularly dour regarding attempts to address obesity. His “Gut Check” piece today on the limited policy tools available to fight the obesity epidemic confirms it: Over the past 50 years, however, some privileged humans have been faced with a largely novel problem: the […]
