Climate Politics
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Dingell to debut House climate bill in April
Dingell says he’ll release a draft of a House climate change bill for comment and feedback in mid-April (sub rqd).
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Eco-sabotage lookout found guilty of two counts of arson for 2001 blaze
A federal jury has found 32-year-old Briana Waters guilty of two counts of arson for her role as the lookout in a 2001 blaze at the University of Washington’s Center for Urban Horticulture. Of more than a dozen people connected with the radical Earth Liberation Front and arrested in connection with various property crimes in […]
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Congress bombarded with requests for renewable tax package
This post is by ClimateProgress guest blogger Kari Manlove, fellows assistant at the Center for American Progress.
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Over 100 retailers, manufacturers, and trade and advocacy groups have sent a familiar message to the Senate: Pass the renewable energy tax package!About two weeks ago, over 500 members of the American Council on Renewable Energy also sent a letter to Congress encouraging the renewable of the production and investment tax credits. Ever since these tax provisions were cut from December's energy bill, support for them has been snowballing.
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President hails cellulosic ethanol as a panacea
I’m offended: President Bush evidently hasn’t been following my string of posts about how cellulosic ethanol probably won’t ever be viable. Addressing a renewable-energy conference, the president fretted that the ethanol boom he set in motion is “beginning to affect the price of food.” He added: “So we got to do something about it.” And […]
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Republican convention will go green
Not to be outdone by the Democratic convention, the Republican convention will, indeed, go green. While hosting divisive delegate debates over the best way to address environmental issues from a GOP perspective, the Minneapolis convention hall will boast recycled-fiber carpet, booths and stages constructed of local, sustainably harvested wood, water in petroleum-free bottles, biodegradable plates, […]
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Nader on Stewart
I missed this when it happened, but here’s Ralph Nader on the Daily Show:
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Timing of EPA decision on vehicle greenhouse-gas regulation still a mystery
When will the U.S. EPA decide whether to regulate vehicle greenhouse-gas emissions? EPA head Stephen Johnson testified in the Senate Tuesday that he just couldn’t say, even though it’s been nearly a year since the agency was directed by the Supreme Court to make that decision. When asked whether any EPA staffers were currently working […]
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Victim of Seattle arsons reaffirms commitment to green building
As Grist readers know — and are furiously debating — there were some arsons in Seattle on Monday which have been attributed to shadowy (perhaps mythical) activist group Earth Liberation Front. The following is a letter to Grist from the owner of one of the houses that was destroyed, Grey Lundberg of CMI Homes, Inc: […]
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Renewable energy subterfuge
The following is a guest essay by Daniel J. Weiss and Nick Kong. It was originally published on the Center for American Progress website.
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Photo: whitehouse.gov"Watch what we do, not we say," Attorney General John N. Mitchell accurately warned at the dawn of the Nixon administration. This could also be a fitting epitaph for President Bush's energy policies. Despite frequent claims of support for renewable energy over the years, the record shows consistent opposition to efforts to spur investments in clean wind, solar, geothermal, and other renewable energy sources.
The subterfuge began when President Bush announced his administration's National Energy Policy on May 17, 2001. The White House's plan was based on recommendations provided to Vice President Cheney from coal, oil, nuclear and other dirty energy companies. The speech included a soothing nod to renewable electricity -- five weeks after the administration proposed slashing millions from renewable energy programs.
The routine has varied little since Bush first took office. President Bush pays lip service to clean energy technologies, while opposing many voluntary incentives and other efforts to promote these very same technologies. Often, these events occur only days apart.
Another attempt at sleight of hand will occur on Wednesday, March 5, when President Bush addresses the Washington International Renewable Energy Conference. This speech comes just seven days after the administration opposed House passage of the Renewable Energy and Energy Conservation Tax Act, H.R. 5351. This bill would extend tax credits to encourage producers and homeowners to employ wind, solar, geothermal, and other renewable energy technologies. Without an extension, an estimated 116,000 construction workers and other employees will lose their jobs.
President Bush will no doubt use his speech to extol the virtues of clean energy technology incentives even while he prepares to wield his veto pen to stop legislation that would do just that. This will only be one event in a long string of Bush rhetoric that doesn't match reality:
