legislation
-
![]()
![]()
Obama’s carbon-cap plan tests Democratic coalition
This piece was originally published in the Omaha World-Herald. Democratic gains in the Plains, the interior West, the Rust Belt and the Old Confederacy have transformed the political landscape. But one primary goal of the Obama administration is straining the geographic diversity of the new Democratic coalition: capping carbon pollution to avert a climate crisis. […]
-
![]()
![]()
Washington’s cap-and-trade legislation no longer involves cap and trade
Photo: libraryman via FlickrWashington state’s cap-and-trade legislation is no more. Or rather, it IS … in the existential sense … but after the House passed a watered down version on Wednesday, it should no longer be allowed to call itself “cap-and-trade legislation.” As there is no cap and trade in said cap-and-trade legislation. There is […]
-
![]()
![]()
Are we hearing enough from real-world climate pollution reducers?
I’ve got a somewhat half-formed thought I’d like to throw out. I’m not sure I have the broad historical/academic/whatever knowledge to back it up (“What’s new?” they ask in unison), but let’s see if it resonates with anyone else. It’s well know that actual markets don’t behave like Ideal Markets full of Rational Actors — […]
-
![]()
![]()
An apology and an explanation for Friedman
There’s an old saying my granddad was fond of. “Dave,” he’d say, rocking his chair, puffing his pipe, squinting into the distance, “don’t be such an a**hole.” Wise words. On reflection, my post about Tom Friedman’s column ended up unnecessarily heated and confrontational, even insulting. I stand by my take on the column, but Friedman […]
-
![]()
![]()
Expect sparks as the Senate takes up energy legislation
If debate in the Senate last week over some relatively non-controversial energy measures was any indication of things to come, we can expect fireworks over energy policy when legislators return from their two-week April recess. The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee took up the first four components of its pending energy package last week, […]
-
Bachmann again calls for revolution against climate action
Two weeks ago, Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) called for an “armed and dangerous” revolution against measures to curb greenhouse-gas emissions and move away from fossil fuels. Now she’s toning down her rhetoric a bit, clarifying during an interview with NewsMax that she wants citizens “to be armed with knowledge, so they can be dangerous to […]
-
![]()
![]()
Republican enviros challenge Boehner’s misinformation
Republicans for Environmental Protection is calling on House GOP leaders to stop spreading misinformation about the climate and energy legislation Democrats released last week. In a pointed press release issued last week, the group challenged allegations made by House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) that a plan to reduce climate-warming emissions amounts to a “light […]
-
![]()
![]()
Reid backs away from funding health care via cap-and-trade
Remember how Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) last week opened the door to the possibility of using cap-and-trade revenues to fund a new health-care system? He’s now sounding less enthused about the idea, saying he has “no big plot” to pay for health care with cap-and-trade. Meanwhile, it’s become clear that Congress will have […]
-
![]()
![]()
‘We set our own pace’
“We are building our consensus, and when we are ready, we will bring it to the floor. I have never been driven by a Senate timetable or what they are willing to pass. We set our own pace and our own standard here, but respectful of what we can get done, working together with the […]
