On January 18, Republican leaders of the Energy Committees met with the corporate pollution lobby to decide how to best handcuff the Obama Administration’s Climate Change agenda.
According to Politico, with the backing of GOP caucus leaders, aides for House Energy and Commerce Chairman Fred Upton (R-MI) and Senate Environment and Public Works Committee ranking member Jim Inhofe (R-OK) met in a closed-door session with the energy industry lobby.
They want to create a unified block from a host of industries for an all-out push to block federal and state climate rules.
Who attended the invitation-only meeting? Although the names are private, it’s believed invitations were extended to the American Petroleum Institute, National Mining Association, National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, U.S. Chamber of Commerce and others.
In the House, Fred Upton (R-MI) wants to introduce a bill as soon as next week to prevent EPA GHG regulations (which began January 2) under the Clean Air Act. Hearings would begin next month with the goal of bringing the bill to the House floor by late February or early March. Addressing EPA’s climate rules was the top energy issue in Upton’s policy agenda released this week.
A Senator bill would go much further. Senator John Barrasso (R-WY) plans to introduce a bill next week to block GHG regulations under the Clean Air Act, the Endangered Species Act, Clean Water Act and the National Environmental Policy Act.
It would prevent states from regulating GHG, as well as public nuisance litigation related to climate change.
Although they’re going for the full boat, Republicans acknowledge they may only be able to delay regulations, but that’s a good first step.
They may well attach the EPA blockade to the federal spending and / or US debt ceiling discussions in March.
Stunning, given that 2010 was the hottest year on record, and in the face of historic floods in Australia and Brazil over the past month. Not to mention, floods in Pakistan this summer and fires in Russia.
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I, for one, believe we can do a better job fixing our problems than the Federal Government. EPA and legislative actions to control emissions and GHG levels will have unintended consequences on the economy and individuals. Instead, consumers can and should drive for real change. Corporations have to do what the Govt tells them, they want to do what consumers demand of them. I personally think it is a cop out to lay the problem on Washington’s door step and sit back to wait for them to baby sit us…again.