Blue Mass Group

Reality-based commentary on politics.

YEAAAAAAH SENATOR KERRY!

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This is a leadoff home run for the Senate … for what will doubtless be a grueling, discouraging game on climate change.

 The Senate bill, authored by Environment and Public Works Committee Chairman Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) and Foreign Relations Committee Chairman John F. Kerry (D-Mass.), has a mix of provisions targeted at both liberals and conservatives. It calls for cutting the nation's emissions 20 percent from 2005 levels by 2020 and 83 percent by 2050 — deeper reductions than in the House bill. It is also deficit-neutral and would make carbon offsets more affordable.

That's leadership, baby. Given how utterly dire the situation is right now … well, this is the least we'll need. As Bill says, we're going to need persistent grassroots intensity on this issue to avoid catastrophe. Luckily, some businesses may be on the same page. Could be some good momentum growing on this issue as well … 

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Comments

  1. For months, Congress has been working on a cap and trade bill to limit carbon dioxide outputs. Sept 25, John Kerry said this:

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    “I don’t know what ‘cap and trade’ means. I don’t think the average American does,” Kerry told reporters. “This is not a cap-and-trade bill, it’s a pollution reduction bill.”  

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    p>There were two basic choices – a carbon tax, or cap and trade. The House sent a cap and trade bill to the Senate. Now, John Kerry doesn’t know what cap and trade is.

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    p>When you can’t call it what it is, you don’t have much faith in it. I can only assume from this bizarre shift that Democrats have done polling and learned that way too many people are against what is actually in a cap and trade system.

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    p>I’m reminded of a former Treasury Secretary, who made the business media jump every time he said the word inflation. He came out and said that from now on, when he meant inflation, he would say banana.

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    p>So thanks, John Kerry, for giving us this banana bill. Not cap and trade. Banana.  

  2. is that if Democrats allow themselves to be rolled by the Republicans on the health care bill (again!), how will they stand pat on the next big bill?

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    p>Another fear is giving up concession after concession and getting no votes back in return. We almost gave up the farm on the stimulus bill and got three votes in the entire Congress (House and Senate!). The Baucus bill made endless concessions to the Republicans and won’t get a single Republican vote.

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    p>And then I read this:

    has a mix of provisions targeted at both liberals and conservatives

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    p>Why are we even trying to woo Republicans anymore?

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    p>It would be such a smarter idea to play hardball and win a gigantically important, very liberal bill. If we do that, then some Republicans may be willing to play and we could then offer some reasonable concessions — but only if they vote for it and only if they’re not game-changingly important (that’s what they get when there’s only 40 of them).

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    p>All of that only happens if Blue Dog/Conservative Democrats who don’t vote for cloture get punished — in the form of threatened loss of their leadership and a threatened loss of DSCC/DCCC support in their reelection bids, the two things any Democratic Senator (or Rep) will probably most care about within the power of leadership. Oh, wait, Harry Reid’s in charge. Crap! At least Nancy Pelosi has something of a spine.  

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