Here’s some political rhetoric for you, via The Hill.
Rep. David McKinley (R-W.Va.) said the change of leadership at the EPA might not be for the better.
“I don’t want a repeat of what happened in Libya when we helped topple [Moammar] Gadhafi and then we wound up having al-Qaeda,” McKinley told Environment & Energy Daily. …
McKinley, a member of the Energy and Commerce Committee, is among the many Republicans who say President Obama’s EPA is harmful to the coal industry.
So let’s analyze this. Let’s break down this statement by the esteemed congressmember from the great state of West Virginia.
Moammar Gadhafi ruled Libya as dictator for 40 years after assuming power in a coup. During that time, he started a war with Iran that took the lives of 500,000 to a million soldiers and some 100,000 civilians. Hundreds more died in uprisings against his brutal regime. Gadhafi actively supported terrorism against Western targets, including providing material support for the bombing of Pan Am 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland. During the 2011 uprising that eventually claimed his position and life, thousands more died.
Moammar Gadhafi, left. Lisa Jackson, right.
Lisa Jackson was appointed by President Obama to serve as the head of the EPA. In that position, she has pushed hard for new standards limiting mercury pollution, smog, particulate matter, and greenhouse gases. She oversaw new mileage requirements for automobiles that will dramatically decrease fuel use in the future. It is safe to say that the new standards implemented during her tenure will prevent hundreds of thousands of premature deaths and save the government billions in healthcare costs.
But then, the Libyan resistance didn’t give McKinley nearly $400,000 in contributions over the course of his career. Mining interests committed to continuing cheap pollution did. Which may help explain the good congressmember’s odd moral position.
