Thread: Senators vow to strip Obama climate power

Senators vow to strip Obama climate power

Jan 31 06:49 PM US/Eastern

Conservative senators vowed Monday to strip President Barack Obama of his power to regulate greenhouse gases, in a move that would cripple US efforts on climate change if successful.

Eleven Republican senators introduced a bill that would stop the Environmental Protection Agency from regulating greenhouse gases, which scientists blame for global warming, without explicit approval by Congress.

Under Obama, the federal agency has steadily increased standards on gas emissions. The Republicans accused Obama of circumventing Congress, where a so-called "cap-and-trade" bill to mandate emission curbs died last year.

"My bill will shrink Washington's job-crushing agenda and grow America's economy," said Senator John Barrasso, a Republican from Wyoming and skeptic of climate change who is leading the effort.

"I will do whatever it takes to ensure that Washington doesn't impose cap-and-trade policies in any form."

The Obama administration counters that a shift to green energy would help both the planet and the economy by creating a new source of high-paying jobs.

Senator John Kerry, a Democrat from Massachusetts who led last year's climate bill, hit back that Barrasso's proposal "puts the public health at risk and encourages the outsourcing of American jobs."

Democratic Senator Robert Menendez of New Jersey accused the Republicans of doing the bidding of industrial emitters, saying: "The health of our children must come before the interests of polluters."

The Republicans swept November elections but the Democratic Party still controls the Senate and the White House, meaning that Obama can veto any effort to roll back powers on emissions.

But the proposal is another sign that it will be virtually impossible for the Democrats to pass legislation on climate change, which failed to pass even when the party controlled the House of Representatives and held a wider majority in the Senate.

The battle in Congress leaves the Obama administration with a delicate task as it tries to persuade China and other growing polluters to agree to a global plan on greenhouse gases.

Obama has pledged that the United States, the second largest emitter, will take action alongside other nations to fight climate change.

Last year was the hottest on record and one of the worst in decades for natural disasters, according to scientists.

http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id ... _article=1

Refs should be invisible and not affect the outcome of the contest. Tell that to government who subsidizes "green" companies

February 02, 2011

A referee shouldn't chose who wins and who loses the game

James Courcelles

A referee: a judge who enforces rules and supervises fair play. Sports fans beg for referees to be invisible, allowing the players determine the outcome of the contest.

However, regarding electric cars, "Start Up America" and solar panels referees are building teams, changing rules, handicapping players and even buying their desired outcome.

Government Motors offers the Chevy Volt, a $41,000 gas/electric car with a huge subsidy that may even double this year. It may not run at all in freezing temps and there will be a dearth of re-charging stations for its electric battery for years. The Mini and the Fiat 500 compete in the small and fuel-efficient market. Both have a longer fuel range, have no electric plug, are smaller and lighter, and are sold for as little as $15,500.

On which side of this contest is the referee on?

The White House has announced the "Start Up America" program. It is an effort to create jobs by giving bureaucrats actual federal tax dollars to select start up companies and invest in entrepreneurial ideas. However, successful venture capitalists regularly say "no!" to good but unprofitable ideas, often pull investments and management when a good idea fails and always complain about limited seed capital and funding. Right now there are millions of small businesses across the nation that are underfunded, struggling and asking:

On which side of this contest is the referee on?

The European Union has begun paying huge subsidies to German and French farmers to place solar panels on barn roofs. These payments are so large that farmers all across the continent have begun building empty barns all over their land, limiting crop yields. With food shortages around the world and with no discernible reduction of energy costs as of yet, some farmers may even decide to strip and till the remaining lands and not bother to plant at all.

The rest of us ask, on which side of the empty barn is the referee on?

James Courcelles is an independent writer who can be reached at JamesCourcelles@yahoo.com

http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/201 ... who_w.html