Senators Bernie Sanders and Barbara Boxer will outline the legislation on Thursday morning. They are even going to let that wacky 350.org activist Bill McKibben speak. Sheesh.
Billed as “major” and “comprehensive” legislation, it will have a carbon tax. Here is the statement from Sanders’ office (bold mine):
Sanders, Boxer to Introduce Major Climate Change Legislation
February 12, 2013
WASHINGTON, Feb 12 – Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) will hold a news conference on Thursday, Feb. 14 to announce comprehensive legislation on climate change. Boxer is Chairman of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works. Sanders serves on the environment committee and also is a member of the Senate energy committee.
Under the legislation, a fee on carbon pollution emissions would fund historic investments in energy efficiency and sustainable energy technologies such as wind, solar, geothermal and biomass. The proposal also would provide rebates to consumers to offset any efforts by oil, coal or gas companies to raise prices.
Environment and consumer leaders set to participate include Bill McKibben, founder of 350.org; Mike Brune, executive director of Sierra Club; Tara McGuiness, executive director of the Center for American Progress Action Fund; Tyson Slocum, Public Citizen’s energy director; and David Bradley, National Community Action Foundation executive director.
Who:
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.)
Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.)
Bill McKibben, 350.org founder
Mike Brune, Sierra Club executive director
Tara McGuiness, CAP Action Fund executive director
Tyson Slocum, Public Citizen’s Energy Program director
David Bradley, National Community Action Foundation executive director
What: News conference on climate change legislation
When: 11 a.m., Thursday, Feb. 14
Where: SD-406, Senate Environment and Public Works Committee hearing room
Source here
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If anyone’s seen the movie “Idiocracy” they’d understand what I am thinking now. The people of Europe and America have become so damned ignorant that we’ve elected a president named Obama. He recycles old dis-proven fodder, without having an ounce of understanding about the subject matter… and receives a round of applause from the brain-dead self-absorbed politicians who see more $$ coming from the too few remaining tax payers.
Someone must stop this nonsense… I absolutely cannot believe this is actually still happening.
Let’s hope that optics, not results, are what count here.
What America gets, Canada does, too.
So why do they keep picking on carbon? There’s two other atoms in a CO2 molecule, after all. I think everyone should write to your senators and representatives to demand a tax on oxygen production.
Really. Think about it: IRS taxes carbon and oxygen. EPA regulates them. USDA can run incentive programs for farmers to sequester carbon, while penalizing them for the O2 surplus.
…and we can finally watch the fedgov collapse under the weight of its own bureaucracy and get on with our lives.
The socialist wing of the democratic party introduces this legislation almost annually. Normally it doesn’t get any press as absolutely NO ONE wants this on their record unless they are from California or have already told their constituents they are a socialist (Sanders has an (I) behind his name not a (D)). It will make for the annual CAGW gab fest in a side meeting room and will never be heard from again. Though the activists may dislocate their shoulders patting themselves on the back at how they stuck it to the establishment!
The Carbon-Tax opposition should engage in political Jujutsu.
Let the proponents push the legislation right into the spotlight.
“Step right up, Senators! Who will be the next one to co-sign this P. O. S.
Smile for the camera.”
Well, we in Australia can tell you a carbon (sic) tax does not work.
We have a carbon (sic) tax for 8 months now, and have had bushfires & floods, and in the northern hemisphere you have a tropical storms and blizzards.
We were told the tax would stop the climate from changing, but, summer is coming to an end, and autumn is looming, closely followed by winter, and all the weather that will come with the changing of seasons defined as climate.
The war on reality (Quote Obama:”climate change is real,” “the reality of climate change’) is for the delusional & mis-informed.
Though no one here needs to be warned, take a hint from those of us who “are living the experience,” the carbon (sic) tax is climate fraud.
What they announce is a press conference. A press conference means nothing. They are hoping for some support. They will not get it. Boxer is throwing crumbs to the Greens. Sanders is a crumb. Let’s hope that McKibben makes a long, heartfelt speech. Nothing hurts these people more than public exposure.
Agree Bear, carbon is not the issue. It is oxygen, particularly dihydrogen monoxide:
http://www.dhmo.org/
With all the crap going on, its hard to know which letter to write first.
So I have a solution:
Dear senator,
please go home, and stay there.
Anthony, if I may, this forum could do with a ‘like’ or ‘unlike’, or ‘+1’ facility. There is such a great range of comments here from well-informed contributors.
Is anyone archiving all this stuff for when we kick a$$ and take names?
Sheldon… go away… quote from today’s rerun of the Big Bang Theory.
Innuendo in·nu·en·do. noun \ˌin-yə-ˈwen-(ˌ)dō, -yü-ˈen-\. def; where you end up getting it.
LOL, they’re going to compensate consumers if fossil fuel prices go up? Where’s that money going to come from? While at the same time mileage taxes are being considered at the state and federal level because fuel efficient cars are reducing gas tax revenue?
This won’t even pass the Senate much less the House–but I do hope Harry Reed lets it come up for a vote. There are several Democratic senators from conservative states who have to run in 2014. I would like to see how they would vote on this. Their constituents would too…
Indeed. What is their problem with organic chemistry. I thought they liked organic things.
In a country which relies havily on shalegas it´s crazy to think about windmills, biomass and other Greenpeace dreams.
On one hand you could have a strong economy. On the other, you could have a carbon tax. You won’t have both.
Come on guys do something about it. Start your own propaganda to show them what really is going on. Fight these hoaxers with their own weapons.
If this carbon tax is for real, then be prepared for a longer economic crisis for years to come
On CSPAN today I saw Bernie Sanders defend the poor people of Vermont (tax the wealthy corporations rather than cut social programs). Tonight he’s going to screw the poor (and all the) people of Vermont with a large tax increase on CO2. Can’t trust these politicians for 15 minutes.
DOA, don’t see it going anywhere. Boxer has been trying to regain momentum for ages and just won’t give up. No way will there be enough votes garnered to be passed in the Senate, let alone the House. A particular pinch point will be “Blue Dog” Dems in coal country states. In a way, not too different from Feinstein’s gun control bill not going anywhere after senators such as Manchin got an earful from their constituents.
I just notified my senators (Sherrod Brown (right, that one – hates reliable carbon and nuclear energy) and Rob Portman (pretty level-headed, but an establishment republican). Portman should vote against Sanders/Feinstein.
Ian H,
You just gave me the perfect come back the next time someone brings up C02 as a pollutant.
“But it’s organic!”
Get Congress to evaluate proposals against the following:
1. Cost of implementation in terms of contribution to budget deficit.
2. Effect on US economy, focussing on lost jobs before jobs which might be created.
3. Effect on climate of all this activity.
4. Scientific evidence underpinning ‘climate change’.
Clearly point 4 depends on who provides the evidenc, as climate science is not science currently.
I”m sure you can sell the electorate a programme that ‘costs a fortune, destroys jobs, does nothing to affect climate variability and is based on fraudulent science’, can’t you?
“Michael Jankowski says:
February 12, 2013 at 8:55 pm”
If we use Australia as an example, the compensation (Compo) will come from the revenue raised by the tax (At an initial price of AU23$/tonne CO2 rising every year until 2015 when Aus joins with the New Zealand and EU ETS systems *HA HA HA HA HA HA*). The only problem with this, in Aus at least, is the revenue raised fell short to the tune of AU$420mil after compo. Then, one of our more clever MP’s, commited 10% of this revenue to the UN climate fund. Certainly *isn’t* a smart nr lucky country anymore! Any shortfall will come from, as we call it here, the consilidated fund; the taxpayer!
Obama studied Marx and Alynski to great effect, this is too much B. S.