Republicans Win Control Of US Senate
For Tom Steyer and other environmentalists, $85 million wasn’t enough to help Democrats keep the Senate blue or win more than a single governor’s mansion in Tuesday’s toughest races. The billionaire’s super PAC and other green groups saw the vast majority of their favored candidates in the battleground states go down to defeat, despite spending an unprecedented amount of money to help climate-friendly Democrats in the midterm elections. The outcome brought gloating from Republicans and fossil-fuel supporters even before the results rolled in — and raised questions about whether greens can fulfill their pledge to make climate change a decisive campaign issue in 2016. –Andrew Restuccia, Politico, 5 November 2015
Climate Change: This was one of the dogs that didn’t bark in the 2014 election, even after liberal billionaire Tom Steyer spent an estimated $70 million to promote the issue and a new U.N. report Sunday warned of “severe, pervasive, and irreversible” global warming that will worsen without environmental policy changes. Robert Brulle, professor of sociology and environmental science at Drexel University, said a GOP-led Congress is more likely to try to stop Obama’s Environmental Protection Agency from imposing new regulations on power plants than endorsing any additional steps to reduce U.S. carbon pollution. Said Brulle: “I am not an optimist about us doing anything – I think it looks bad for political action on climate change in any way.” –Will Bunsch, Philadelphia Daily News, 5 November 2014
The $12 million that the United States Senate has allocated to UN climate agencies is expected to be among the first casualties [after] Republican take control of the chamber following Tuesday’s midterm elections. The current Senate bill on funding for state and foreign operations includes $11,700,000 for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Control (IPCC) and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC). However, the House version of the bill passed by a Republican-controlled sub-committee, states that “none of the funds in this Act may be made available for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change/United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.” –Denis Fitzgerald, UN Tribune, 4 November 2014
The Keystone XL pipeline won big Tuesday night. Following an election night that saw anti-Keystone Democrats replaced by pro-Keystone Republicans, the oil-sands pipeline project now appears to have at least 60 supporting votes. That means legislation forcing approval of the long-delayed project may be headed to President Obama. Before the election, at least 57 senators could be counted on to support pro-Keystone legislation, but that was never enough to beat a filibuster from the project’s opponents. Tuesday night’s results appear to change that. –Clare Foran, National Journal, 5 November 2014
The expected Republican majority in the U.S. Senate after Tuesday’s mid-term elections is likely to seek to roll back federal regulations on power-plant emissions, approve the Keystone XL pipeline, expand oil and gas development on federal lands and work toward ending the 40-year ban on U.S. crude oil exports, energy experts said. “The Republicans will go to Obama and say, look, ‘We’ve got to get this done; your own government is saying this is fine. The election is over so you don’t have to worry,'” Lynch said. –Jon Hurdle, The Street, 4 November 2014
President Obama will continue to take action on policies to fight climate change whether or not Republicans take control of the Senate, the White House said. White House press secretary Josh Earnest told reporters Tuesday that Obama plans to keep using his executive powers to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions that cause climate change. “The president will use his executive action to take some additional steps.” –Timothy Cama, The Hill, 4 November 2014
Thanks to Dr. Benny Peiser and The GWPF for this summary
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Steyer as “David”, Kochs make an appearance & a possible run for the Presidency?
6 Nov: Politico: Where did Steyer’s stragegy go wrong?
By ANDREW RESTUCCIA and DARREN GOODE; Kenneth P. Vogel contributed to this report.
Still, the anti-Steyer grumbling started on election night, when some Democratic operatives said privately that instead of giving at least $57.6 million to his own NextGen Climate Action Committee, Steyer would have gotten more for his money by donating it to the party’s blessed super PACs…
“I think it’s safe to say that Tom has to be hurting in a huge way and that sometimes Goliath wins,” one long-time climate campaigner said. “I don’t expect David to give up, but he may need to look at a different way of joining the battle.”
Former South Carolina Rep. Bob Inglis, one of the few prominent Republicans calling for action on climate change, said Steyer’s problem is that he’s not doing enough to appeal to conservative-leaning voters…
“I wish that he had gone to the right and not to the left. He could have played up his credentials as a very successful businessman and Stanford MBA to present free enterprise as the answer to climate,” said Inglis, who is a vocal advocate of a carbon tax. “Somewhere along the way, he chose to go left and work on the left. I think we see the limits of that now.”…
Still, Steyer’s personal brand reached new heights. He’s been the subject of near-constant media attention for months, participating in high-profile stories in The New York Times, The New Yorker, The Los Angeles Times, POLITICO and even Men’s Journal, and he drew publicity by challenging conservative big-money titans Charles and David Koch to a debate on climate change. (They declined.) Unlike other notoriously private major donors, Steyer relishes the attention, cultivating his image in the press and setting the stage for his possible future political ambitions…
“He becomes one of the most popular and sought after people in Democratic politics regardless because he’s written the checks and has the courage to write the checks,” veteran New York-based Democratic strategist Hank Sheinkopf said. “This may open up a different kind of political future for him. He could be kingmaker or he could be king. That’s his decision.”
But “he’s going to have to change his tactics if he wants to win elections,” Sheinkopf said. That includes “picking better targets” and not being overly creative with his ads and media campaign, he said.
“You don’t have to be Picasso to win a campaign,” he said.
http://www.politico.com/story/2014/11/where-did-steyers-strategy-go-wrong-112624.html?hp=r2
Good article – I think that Steyer was really just on a mission to buy himself some personal fame and invitations to all of the “right” kinds of cocktail parties. In that, he has been completely successful! Why should he care if his candidates won or lost, he got what he wanted – a bunch of Hollywood stars and politicians fawning all over him! Steyer looks to me like he’s trying to be the Donald Trump of the left.
One little note in this article made me shake my head in disgust:
“Former South Carolina Rep. Bob Inglis, one of the few prominent Republicans calling for action on climate change”
I love how Politico always goes back and quotes Bob Ingles! Background – Ingles was a congressman from South Carolina, well known as an outspoken evangelical, and fanatic opponent of Bill Clinton, and supporter of impeachment during the 90’s. He left office for a while, then was re-elected, and suddenly decided that he had become a “True Believer” in his new religion of “Climate Change”. Voters reacted badly, and he was tossed out of his seat in the 2010 primaries, and has no place in the republican party of today. He has never gotten over the insult, and now speaks against his former “team” any chance he gets.
So, “prominent Republican”??? How about “completely discredited, repudiated, and bitter former Republican”??
I think it is only beginning to sink in what a painful spanking the voters administered to the Democrats and the Obama Admisistration:
http://tiny.cc/g0zwox
The House of Representatives has not been this lopsided since the 1920’s.
Hope and Change…
The group I occasionally follow & banter with are agitated… to say the least.
Lately there seems to be something about distancing yourself from president in your political party. Al Gore distanced himself from Clinton and lost. Midterms 2006 many were trying to distance from Bush and lost. On November 6th 2006, the Republican Party held a majority in both the House and Senate. By November 8th, the Democrats had a majority in both the House of Representatives and the Senate. I don’t recall McCain doing it in any big way, but he probably did some. Now the same thing has happened again to the Democrats.
Obama has received a major check. Not a checkmate; that would have required 67 R. senators.
But the result is still excellent. Obama can veto all he wants, but he CANNOT pass new legislation now. Before, by buying off a few critical House members, he was able to get Obamacare passed. But the House is now much more conservative.
The House controls spending, per the Constitution. They should refuse to authorize any funds for whatever illegal immigration decrees Obama comes up with. If there is no money nothing can be done.
This will be very interesting. Obama’s petulance is wrongheaded and stupid. He is the #1 reason that Republicans now control ⅔ of government. He should have held out an olive branch — no matter how insincere. But the way he’s acting will only harden the attitude of the freshman Republican Congress.
And Sen. Inhofe has their number and will hopefully keep dumb things from happening
Some things never change:
SpaghettiO held out an olive branch early, he pulled back a bloody stump. Remember, “we gonna make sure he’s a one term president?”
Now for laughs, bet we’ll see the Republicans pushing for filibusters reform and bitchin’ about obstruction! Nah, Dave, enjoy because it could be just a dead cat bounce. The Millennials will be back.
The history books will remember, 1st black President, healthcare, jobs created, economy…not repeal, replace, shut down, etc… 15 Million Jobs 5 Years of Job Growth Deficit: Down Unemployment:Down GDP: UP DOW: UP Bin Laden: Dead 10 Million Insured
Teamerica , backwardness is the new forward
Republicans Showed They Hate Obama More Than They Love America. They Hated Him for Winning and They’ll Screw US All Just to Spite Him
Repubs all better get the New 21st Century Glass-Steagal Act put into place before the bankers crash everything again. After all, it was you guys that led the way to Foreclosure Phil Gramm’s successful shenanigans and the Millennials know it.
Incumbents lost mainly because the overall condition of the United States is not great. This will happen over and over again for as long as the overall condition of the United States remains less than great, regardless of which party controls Congress or the Presidency. It says nothing about any specific issue.
Forecast is for snow in Florida this weekend. Wonder how that will play out for CAGW. Undoubtedly the press will say it is “weather weirding” caused by Global Warming.
God bless America!
First the Australians showed the way last year, and voted in a new government that has successfully exterminated Australia’s carbon tax, and watered down the climate hysteria seen under the previous Labor/Greens left wing government.
Now America has carried out its own bloodbath against left wing political insanity!
Hey,
I’ve just come across some nice things, I think you might be interested in that, please take a look
Sent from my iPhone, gerjaison