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  • What to do with the utility handouts in the climate bill?

    Passage of the Waxman-Markey bill through the House was a shock to the Beltway. Rahm Emanuel himself called its architects after the floor vote to express his surprise and admiration — and if anyone knows how to count votes, it’s Rahm Emanuel. One compromise more than any other enabled the bill to navigate the sticky […]

  • Boxer-Kerry climate bill: what to watch for

    Sens. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) and John Kerry (D-Mass.) plan to introduce their climate bill tomorrow. Here are a few brief notes on what to watch for. Just as a reminder, for the non-wonks, here’s how the process works: 1) House passes bill, 2) Senate passes bill, 3) House and Senate bills reconciled via conference committee, […]

  • Treasury memo hysteria shows media incapable of screening out junk

    Is any piece of nonsense from right-wing opponents of clean energy policy too silly, too outrageous, to get its day in the national press spotlight? It would seem not. Last week, CBS conservo-blogger Declan McCullagh breathlessly reported: “Obama Admin: Cap And Trade Could Cost Families $1,761 A Year.” That figure spread like wildfire through right-wing […]

  • Could Waxman and Markey have used the EPA threat more effectively?

    Should Waxman and Markey have kicked off House climate-bill negotiations with a stronger ask? The bill they introduced was effectively the U.S. Climate Action Partnership proposal, which already reflected years of negotiation and compromise. The idea was that the difficult work of negotiations had already been done — enviros and business both on board! — […]

  • The senator from Montana and the middle class

    This morning, the Senate took its final step on climate change before its summer vacation—a hearing pulled together by Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus from Montana on how carbon allowances are allocated under the Waxman-Markey bill. The main takeaway: Under the House bill, the middle class does the heavy lifting to pay for the […]

  • Martin Feldstein uses Washington Post op-ed page for cap-and-trade scare-mongering

    Martin Feldstein is a conservative economist — a long-time advocate of supply-side, trickle-down economic policy and a leading advocate for Social Security privatization — so it’s no great surprise that he has taken to the pages of the Washington Post to characterize the Waxman-Markey climate and energy bill as “All Cost, No Benefit.” Feldstein has […]

  • Waxman-Markey giveaways pit consumer protection against climate protection

    Waxman-Markey supposedly requires a large percent of the savings from free permits to be passed along to consumers. The intent is that they act as protection against price increases rather than a source of profits for large companies. Unfortunately, to the extent this works, it is likely to dampen the price signals that are supposed […]

  • Waxman-Markey permit allocation plan: could be worse

    As Grist readers know, the House Energy Committee has been behind closed doors hashing out a compromise version of the Waxman-Markey climate and energy bill. Some details of the compromise were announced earlier this week. Today saw the release of the proposal for allocating pollution permits under the compromise bill (reprinted in full at the […]

  • Waxman and Markey divvy up the goods — I wish my parents had given me allowances like this!

    Henry Waxman (D-CA) and Ed Markey (D-MA) have circulated a draft proposal of allowance allocations for their landmark energy and climate legislation (see here and below). They explain: Emission allowances will be allocated to accomplish three primary goals: (1) to protect consumers from energy price increases; (2) to assist industry in the transition to a […]