Republicans Stall Climate Change Bill

GOP Senate Filibuster Puts Greenhouse Gas Bill In Jeopardy

(AP)  Senate Republicans on Friday blocked a global warming bill that would have required major reductions in greenhouse gases, after a bitter debate over its economic costs and whether it would substantially raise gasoline and other energy prices.

Democratic leaders fell a dozen votes short of getting the 60 needed to end a Republican filibuster on the measure and bring the bill up for a vote. The 48-36 vote failed to reach even a majority, a disappointment to the bill's supporters.

Majority Leader Harry Reid was expected to pull the legislation, in all likelihood pushing the congressional debate over climate change to next year with a new Congress and a new president.

The bill would have capped carbon dioxide coming from power plants, refineries and factories, with a target of cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 71 percent by mid-century.

"It's a huge tax increase," argued Republican Senate leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, a prominent coal-producing state. He maintained that the proposed system of allowing widespread trading of carbon emissions allowances would produce "the largest restructuring of the American economy since the New Deal."

Supporters of the bill accused Republicans of muddying the water with misinformation.

"There is no tax increase," Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., one of the bill's chief sponsors said. She said the emissions trading system would provide tax relief to help people pay energy prices. And supporters disputed that it would substantially increase gasoline prices.

Four Democrats joined most Republicans in essentially killing the bill.

Both presidential candidates, Democrat Barack Obama and Republican John McCain, were absent, although supporters of the bill said they had sent letters advising they would have voted for the bill.

[al2008-2009]

I*m appalled at the administration*s lack of response to the global warming earthquakes, hurricanes, and cyclones as well. We have no comprehensive strategy in place whatsoever, let alone a detailed plan of action to mitigate the effects of these quakes and cyclones, and mother earth continues to suffer while the administration refuses to go forward and do what*s right for mother earth.
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How long must we sit idly by while our mother continues to suffer from the warming taking place at a feverish pace? How long must our mother suffer before we have proper c02 taxes put into place? How long must the destruction of mother earth take place before we finally put responsible regulations into effect? How long must we wait until we beef up our corn ethanol production? At least Obama wants to cut c02 pollution by 80%; he is definitely our best hope. As Obama has recently stated on Earth Day, we will save the planet. We will change our economy to a green economy, eliminate our current anti-progressive economy, and eliminate c02 pollution by 80% in our generation. This is a change we all definitely need, a much needed change for the better.
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We the people call upon our leaders to implement a comprehensive antiglobal warming strategy at once and work in coordination with state and federal officials; these quakes, cyclones and disasters continue to worsen and the quicker we stop the warming the sooner we will see these quakes and storms cease. We need action now.

[oldpilot954]

Heck, lets put some wind turbines in Washington, D.C.! There''s enough hot air there to power the nation:) I too have problems selling petroleum energy over seas. I am against the bill that just got bogged down. Everything I have read suggests it would create a huge financial drain with little benefit over other options. The truth is that North America consumes massive amounts of energy. The "American Dream" says that "I should be comfortable". Comfort in 100-degree weather or -10 weather burns energy. Some energy consumption is simply the geographic size of the continent.

[cfin5]

Posted by bridger82923 at 01:42 PM : Jun 07, 2008------ I know about the "winds" your talking about. I do not believe that our natural "energy" resources should be sold to any other country. It''s not just the republiCANT''s that are gypin'' us,.....there''s plenty of democraps doing the same thing.......they''re all crooks, except for RON PAUL, CHUCK BALDWIN, and BOB BARR. Man would I like to see those three guys in the highest offices of the land.

[bridger82923]

To cfin5 What domestic production? Google Jonah Field and find the larges natural gas field in the county that has decimated us here in the Green River Valley. The "winds" referred to by aerhed are the Wind River Mountains, part of the Rockies. They claim we need the gas here in America yet they are selling it to China and sending it to Canada. They like to refer to Wyoming as the energy state due to the oil, gas and coal but it could be the renewable energy state with wind, solar and geo but the Repukes would have to figure out how to make billions off of it before that will happen.

[cfin5]

Posted by aerhed at 10:57 PM : Jun 06, 2008----------Where your at and seeing the wind patterns,....what DOMESTIC PRODUCTION are you even talking about? I''ll grant you that California is always on fire since they stopped controlled burning years ago and let the stubble build up. Now lets talk about your buddies wanting us to pay 45 Trillion dollars compared to your "ALL REPUBLICANS" statement. That would cause so many rats to go to that environmental corn crib regardless of race, religion, blah, blah, and especially political persuasion. I''m not interested in being your financial slave for the rest of my life just so some SHYSTER named Al Gore can get rich with his environmental marketing patents. I''m a political conservative all right,.....as well as a "common sense" environmental conservative. Junk science for the environment is worthless to this Earth''s problems, real science is the answer.

[lorinkundert]

The Climate Change myth yet again.

Fact 1: One volcanic eruption will throw more greenhouse gas and pollutants in the air than every nation on Earth does in a year.

Fact 2: Livestock in the US puts out more greenhouse gas than everything else in the US combined.

Fact 3: Core samples clearly show a cycle of cooling and heating throughout the Earth''s history.

Fact 4: Greenland 1000 years ago was far warmer than it is now, and had enough arable land for growing food.

And the list goes on and on.

About time the senate repubs did something worthwhile.

[aerhed]

To get back on the subject of climate change, I can literally look out my front window and see it. At least I can see it when the mountains aren''t obscured. 15 years ago I moved to about the most sparsely populated place in America, the Green river valley at the foot of the Wind River range. The Bridger wilderness and Wind River range are supposed to be a CLASS 1 airshed. One of the two cleanest airsheds in the country. The Winds have the largest number of alpine glaciers in the lower 48 and they are going fast, maybe twenty years left, thirty tops. These glaciers form the headwaters of the Green, the Sweetwater, The Wind river/Bighorn system, and several others (got water?). Anyway, I can see these glaciers when the smog/ozone/dust from our DOMESTIC PRODUCTION doesn''t obscure my/your mountains. Fossil fuels suck on so many levels even this ramble can''t cover them. ALL REPUBLICANS and some Dems are guilty. Buncha greedy cowards.

[cfin5]

Since no one has that kind of money anyway,.....they can worry about that too.

[cfin5]

The Global Worriers say they want 45 "TRILLION" dollars to save the world from something the solar cycles do. Yeah, that worries me all right.

[downsteamjim]

Compared to Mao, Pol Pot, the Burmese generals, & Kim Jung Il, Obama is a little to the right. Compared to Mugabe & Chavez, Obama is a little to the left. Yeah, that proves Obama is a centrist.

[downsteamjim]

The Democrat plan will work even better than they hope. It should drive up price of everything produced in the U.S. China pick up the slack. China''s use of coal will continue its rapid expansion. Result U.S. job loss, dirtier air, but we can smile and say we got change.

[lovegetpeace]

After 1-Jan-2009, we can finally kiss Good-bye to the Filibuster and Veto Powers of the U.S. Constitution. President Bush has been the greatest president for the Democratic Party.

[pboskovich]

You are wrong about fascism. In a facist state, there is an emination of the private sector. Everything is controld by the state. What congresswoman Maxine Waters D-Ca suggested a few weeks ago was to take over the oil companies and have the government run them. That is a sign of fascism. Do your homework!
---------------------------------------------

You do not understand Fascism. This is a system where the state and business act together in an unholy alliance to advance the interests of both. Fascism represents a point as conservative and far to the right on the political spectrum as is possible. Fascism is the ultimate in conservatism.

The only individuals that get ahead on a fascist society are business leaders and the politicians who kowtow to them. Sound familiar?

Obama is actually centrist, but appears to be liberal given the move, over the past 25 years, of our society to the right.


Posted by elz523 at 05:29 PM : Jun 06, 2008

[pboskovich]

Dear BEEMAN444 and other angry Bush hating libs,

I think you should take a class in economics. Oil prices are going up because more people want it. It is called supply and demand. The U.S. has little control over what price OPEC wants to sell at. Yes, we need more alternative energy. Yes, we need cleaner burning engines. But what we need most of all is energy independence. You should also consider that the oil companies are owned my millions of people in the form of common stock and profits are paid out in the form of dividends which you and your friends can tax. It is a huge net boost to the economy and government spending.

On average the oil companies are making under a 10 percent profit. I make a higher margin off of my mutual funds. To put it into perspective, Microsoft makes a 26 percent profit margin. State and federal government taxes are over 13 percent of the price of gas.

Also, the U.S. has a large amount of untapped oil resources (Alaska, California, Texas) and with new technology, it can be extracted in a very eco-friendly way. It does not have to trash the environment. %u2018Save the Earth%u201D groups have also blocked every new refinery in the U.S. for the last 35 years. Other groups block new nuclear power plants. It looks to me like the Eco%u2019s and oil supplying countries are most responsible for high fuel prices, not U.S. oil companies and politicians. Its plain econimics.

[elz523]

And, for those of you who use the word fascist to describe republicans, apparently you do not understand what a fascist is. A fascist is someone who wants to control everything you do. Conservatives want less government%u2026liberals want more government%u2026 more government equals more control over your money and life%u2026more control over your money and life equals fascism. Know you know.



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Posted by pboskovich at 04:27 PM : Jun 06, 2008


You do not understand Fascism. This is a system where the state and business act together in an unholy alliance to advance the interests of both. Fascism represents a point as conservative and far to the right on the political spectrum as is possible. Fascism is the ultimate in conservatism.

The only individuals that get ahead on a fascist society are business leaders and the politicians who kowtow to them. Sound familiar?

Obama is actually centrist, but appears to be liberal given the move, over the past 25 years, of our society to the right.

[beeman4444]

PUT BUSH AND MCCAIN AND THE ECO OF THE OIL COMPYS IN PRISON AND LET THEM PAY FOR THE GAS THEY ARE IN IT ALL TOGETHER IF THEY ARE ANY JUSTIC IN THE USA THEY SHOULD BE LOCK UP BE NIGHT FALL NOT JUST ONE ALL OF THEM

[pboskovich]

The oil companies give just as much money to Democrats as they do to Republicans. They are all dirty.

And, for those of you who use the word fascist to describe republicans, apparently you do not understand what a fascist is. A fascist is someone who wants to control everything you do. Conservatives want less government%u2026liberals want more government%u2026 more government equals more control over your money and life%u2026more control over your money and life equals fascism. Know you know.

[pboskovich]

Has anyone read the most recent report on global warming from the IPCC (you know, the UN panel that shares the Nobel prize with Al Gore)? They have decided to change their current predictions because the most recent results do not match the computer model predictions. They found that ocean temperatures and land surface temperatures are much lower than expected. The IPCC now predicts that the earth will experience a cooling over the next ten years. Of course, the cooling, due to natural variations, will be much less than normal because of human activity, states the IPCC. This should be no surprise to many of us since all satellite data shows that temperatures have been declining since 1998.

Also, for those of you who say that the debate on global warming is over, maybe you should tell this to the 31,000 scientist (9,000 have a PhD.) who signed a report out of the University of Oregon stating that man made global warming alarmist theories are false.

This is why Republicans fight global warming legislation. They know it is bogus. They just do not have the spine to say so because it is not politically correct at this time.

If you want to save the earth, use facts not speculation.

[superdem]

No one will develop alternative fuels as long as you can burn coal and oil cheaply. The Republicans have no credibility on this issue, starting with Saint Ronald Reagan, who ordered Jimmy Carter''s solar collectors off of the White House roof and urged Americans to the gluttonous consumption of gasoline and the purchase of huge SUVs as a matter of personal freedom. The Republicans will sell us all down their polluted river so long as there''s a buck to be made, that''s why the oil, gas, coal, and nuclear industries all support Republicans. Cheap resources plus no pollution controls equals rich Republicans. Virtually no progress has been made on alternative fuels since the Carter Administration - that''s 28 years. Why ? 8 years of Reagan, 4 years of Bush No. 1, and 8 years of Bush No. 2, that''s 20 years of Republican opposition to any national policy on energy. The oil and coal industries are fatter than they''ve ever been, and the glaciers are all melting. Actually 28 years of Republican oppostion, because they fought Clinton all the way, too. The Republicans are killing us, and the whole planet, too.