Climate Politics
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The good, the bad, and the ugly of the ‘Gang of 10’ drilling deal, part 2
Major legislative compromises are unsatisfying by design. They invariably have good, bad, and ugly parts. I have previously argued that the Democrats would be smart to compromise on offshore drilling. The rest of this series will examine whether the so-called Gang-of-10 deal is in fact a smart compromise. That question can be rephrased as, does […]
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Virginia governor falsely claims Obama shares his support for new coal
Virginia governor Tim Kaine (D) held a Northern Virginia town hall meeting in Prince William County in the Washington, D.C. exurbs as part of his campaign for Barack Obama. The subtext of the town hall (one of a series) is that Kaine is trying to prove his value to Obama so he can get the […]
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T. Boone Pickens gets face time with both prez candidates
T. Boone Pickens, the former Texas oilman who has turned his focus — and substantial funding — to renewable energy, breakfasted with both of the presidential candidates in past days. (But is he still a slim Pickens?) The billionaire met with John McCain on Friday; Pickens has said that he supports the Republican candidate, but […]
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Why is nuclear energy what ‘real men’ support?
On Friday, I pointed to some survey results showing that more men than women support nuclear power, by a 72-40 percent margin. Today, I was reading a Lou Aguilar piece in National Review called "Real Men Vote for McCain" — which as far as I can tell is not parody, though it’s difficult to be […]
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Energy in the Democratic platform
Here’s a selection from the Democratic platform (PDF), final draft released Friday. What do you think? — New American Energy In the local platform hearings, Americans talked about the importance of energy to the economy, to national security and to the health of our planet. Speaking loud and clear, they said that America needs a […]
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John McCain, who has missed several crucial energy votes, says he hasn’t
This is McCain interviewing Walter Isaacson at the Aspen Institute: "I have not missed any crucial vote." Says Satyam at ThinkProgress: McCain’s has actually missed several "crucial" energy votes. In July alone, he missed every single energy vote brought to the floor. This session, McCain has skipped votes supporting renewable energy tax credits four times, […]
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Department of Energy flushes $15 million down the hydrogen toilet
There are only three sure things in life — death, taxes, and you won’t be buying a hydrogen fuel cell car. Sadly, the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy has not gotten any of the memos (see “Some clarity on the Clarity” and “This just in: Hydrogen fuel cell cars […]
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Cuckoo bananas energy policy from House conservatives
Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) personifies just how haywire House conservatives have gone lately, particularly on energy issues. She quickly made a name for herself after being elected to Congress in 2006. In fact, she gained some dubious notoriety even before being elected, announcing to a Brooklyn Park, Minnesota congregation in October 2006 that "God then […]
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Courage and song at Green Corps training
Last Friday, I lead a favorite Green Corps workshop on protest songs. When I first taught the session, years ago, I said that an organizer or campaigner might only be called upon to sing two songs in their career: We Shall Overcome at civil rights gatherings, and Solidarity Forever at labor conferences. The two experiences […]
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Talking with voters in northern Virginia about the environment and the election
This is part of a series of dispatches from Melinda Henneberger, who’s talking to voters around the U.S. about their views on the environment and the election. Reston Town Center. Reston, Va. — If Virginia were a person, it would look a lot like Rod Markham, a federal contractor, retired from the Army, who’s leaning […]
