Yeah, you heard me.
It's time to kill the "energy-only" legislation being cooked up by the corporate interests in our Congress and Senator Reid.
If we need to pass a bill to deal with the oil industry in the gulf, fine.
But we cannot call this a "comprehensive" bill without it actually being a climate bill. I will NOT stand for it.
We no longer have time to keep passing energy bills (our THIRD in FIVE years) when the scope of the energy gap and climate change that we will face stands as it does given our current levels of consumption.
Unlike in the health care debate, in which there was an actual (if inferior) mechanism to reduce costs and extend coverage without the public option, the cap or tax on carbon is absolutely essential. It is very likely that any energy bill, with its Renewable Electricity Standard, would likely be only a continuation of the status quo or, as energy analysts call it, "business as usual". Given that demand is likely to increase 15% by 2020, a 15% RES is a waste of fucking time.
And given that Detroit is not going to go along with increases in fuel efficiency on top of what Obama has already wrung out of them, the piecemeal, bullshit energy bill they are compiling should die and die quickly.
The simple fact is, if there isn't even a mechanism to cover the power industry with a carbon cap, there will be no progress made. No signal sent that clean energy is the future. No nothing.
We need President Obama to get it: if you don't stand for TRULY curbing our addiction to fossil fuels outside of a bunch of highly touted but ineffective programs, your efforts should go down in flames.
And if we kill it now, the shitsacks in the DC "center" won't get the chance to pat themselves on the back and take a bath in coal and oil industry cash after passing a toothless bill, arguing that they made concessions and acting like it ought to be Christmas for environmentalists.
I'm looking at you, Mr. President.
I'm looking at you, Byron Dorgan, Jeff Bingaman, Ben Nelson, Blanche Lincoln, Kent Conrad, et al.....
So speaking as an accused "moderate" compared to a lot of Kossacks, here I am.
ON record.
KILL THE ENERGY BILL.
Thanks.