U.S. Treasury’s “Climate Hub” (on the road to serfdom)

From MasterResource

By Robert Bradley Jr. — April 1, 2022

“Consistent with President Biden’s whole-of-government approach to climate change, Treasury will work with other stakeholders, including the National Climate Task Force and other agencies and regulators.”

“Treasury will focus on the broad range of its climate-related policy work connected to 1) climate transition finance, 2) climate-related economic and tax policy, and 3) climate-related financial risks…. Treasury is also creating a new Climate Hub and appointing a Climate Counselor to coordinate and lead many of its efforts to address climate change.” 

This 788-word press release below speaks for itself. An intellectual/political elite is all-in to assume the ‘commanding heights’ of the U.S. energy industries, just as is the case in the UK and EU.

It was once said that “war is the health of the state.” In our time, climate change policy (Al Gore’s ‘central organizing principle‘) is the health of the State at home and abroad. Economic freedom hangs in the balance with the commoners fighting against the elite.

Make no mistake: the recent “drill, baby, drill” out of Washington, DC (typified by DOE Secretary Granholm at CERAWeek22) is window dressing. “We are going to get rid of fossil fuels,” an unscripted Joe Biden himself stated.

The climate alarmist agenda of Biden’s puppeteers is being rushed into play to create what Milton Friedman once warned against, “the tyranny of the status quo.” Elections are coming, and citizen-voters know the real Biden agenda.

The U.S. Department of Treasury press release of April 19, 2021, follows:

WASHINGTON — Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury announced a coordinated climate policy strategy that will:

Bring to bear the full force of the Treasury Department on domestic and international policymaking, leveraging finance and financial risk mitigation to confront the threat of climate change. These actions will position the economy for strong and sustainable growth consistent with a net-zero emissions future.

To implement this strategy, Treasury will focus on the broad range of its climate-related policy work connected to 1) climate transition finance, 2) climate-related economic and tax policy, and 3) climate-related financial risks.  As part of this strategy, Treasury is also creating a new Climate Hub and appointing a Climate Counselor to coordinate and lead many of its efforts to address climate change.  

Treasury’s unique responsibilities to lead on a range of programs related to climate change – including economic, financial sector, and government policies – will be reflected in the expanded climate strategy work program. The Treasury Climate Hub will coordinate and enhance existing climate-related activities by harnessing the tools, capabilities, and expertise from across the Department – including from Domestic Finance, Economic Policy, International Affairs, and Tax Policy. With a view of all Treasury climate initiatives, the Hub will enable Treasury to move nimbly and efficiently in prioritizing climate action.

Treasury’s first Climate Counselor is John E. Morton, a recognized leader in the field of climate finance. Mr. Morton brings to Treasury more than 25 years of experience in emerging markets, investment finance, and economic and environmental policy. As Climate Counselor, he will lead the Climate Hub, report directly to and advise the Secretary on a broad range of climate matters, and focus in particular on Treasury’s efforts to facilitate and unlock the financing needed for investments to achieve a net-zero economy at home and abroad.

“Climate change presents new challenges and opportunities for the U.S. economy.  The steep consequences of our actions demand that the Treasury Department make climate change a top priority,” said Secretary Janet L. Yellen. “Climate change requires economy-wide investments by industry and government as well as actions to measure and mitigate climate-related risks to households, businesses, and our financial sector.

Finance and financial incentives will play a crucial role in addressing the climate crisis at home and abroad and in providing capital for opportunities to transform the economy. I look forward to working with John and our team to leverage their expertise and ensure that Treasury is doing everything it can to respond to climate change while creating opportunities that strengthen our economy.”

Treasury’s climate policy strategy will support the Biden-Harris Administration’s critical climate-related goals by:

  • Mobilizing financial resources for climate-friendly investments at home and abroad, and prioritizing the expedited transition of high-emitting sectors and industries;
  • Leveraging economic and tax policies to support building climate-resilient infrastructure and ensuring the transition to a net-zero decarbonized economy;
  • Ensuring that environmental justice considerations feature centrally in programs, policies, and activities given the disproportionate impacts that climate change has on disadvantaged communities;
  • Ensuring that policies designed and implemented to assist with the transition to a lower-carbon economy are broadly just and equitable and support well-paying jobs;
  • Helping household, businesses, workers, and investors analyze, stay informed about, and adapt to the economic and financial risks and opportunities associated with climate change;
  • Promoting globally consistent approaches to climate-related financial risks; and
  • Understanding and mitigating the risks that climate change poses to the stability of the U.S. and global financial system and economy.

Consistent with President Biden’s whole-of-government approach to climate change, Treasury will work with other stakeholders, including the National Climate Task Force and other agencies and regulators.  The efforts across the Department will support engagement by the Secretary, senior officials, and staff in related independent processes, including at the Financial Stability Oversight Council.

Appendix: John E. Morton, ‘Climate Counselor’

This description of the leader of Treasury’s effort, John Morton, follows. An elitist/Statist he is:

John E. Morton was most recently a Partner at Pollination, a specialist climate change advisory and investment firm. Morton was a Presidential Appointee in the Obama Administration and served as White House Senior Director for Energy and Climate Change at the National Security Council. In this role, he had overall responsibility for coordinating the Obama Administration’s policies and strategies on international energy and climate change issues.

Earlier in the Administration, he served for six years as Vice President for Investment Policy, Chief of Staff, and Chief Operating Officer of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC). Before his Government service, Morton was Managing Director of Economic Policy at The Pew Charitable Trusts and a private equity investor with Global Environment Fund. He began his career as a strategy consultant with Mercer and managing World Bank projects in environmental infrastructure sectors in the former Soviet Union.

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Gregory Woods
April 2, 2022 3:21 am

any change of administration, Trump-Style, would require a massive firing of Federal employees….

Thomas Gasloli
Reply to  Gregory Woods
April 2, 2022 6:27 am

The US government (Federal, state, and local) needs to be hacked down to what it was prior to FDR for there to be any real change.

Bill Powers
Reply to  Thomas Gasloli
April 2, 2022 11:47 am

Change to include any hope of a balanced budget. When you consider the fed, states, and local governments, more than half the population is being carried on the backs of the private sector taxpayer.

Once Wisconsin set the precedent to allow government workers to unionize. The bank became irrevocably in the hole that only becomes deeper and deeper with each union negotiation between government workers: 2 for you 1 for me.

RevJay4
Reply to  Gregory Woods
April 2, 2022 6:49 am

And, in some cases, indictments for treason and subsequent required sentences.
Climate change is nonsense and is becoming more apparent each time the government attempts to establish it as a viable threat to life on the planet.
Time for world citizens to let their disapproval be known. Whatever that means.

Gary Pearse
Reply to  RevJay4
April 2, 2022 10:29 am

It seems truckers in France and Canada get the picture. The latter have been jailed in numbers, fined, had bank accounts frozen and thousands of charges, class actions, still in the works, called ultra right N@zies, for a protest in front of parliament (a couple of non-trucker interlopers with Nzi flags were photographed repeatedly by the press). No one died or was even injured seriously!

All this phoney climate policy to destroy affordable energy will bring people back to protest. The totally ugly, tyrannical response of the Canadian government the, press and frankly much of the citizenry in the capital city is numbing. This was a beautiful country. I mapped geology and explored for minerals and metals from northern B.C./Yukon to Newfoundland and Labrador and Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec in between, from the late 1950s to 2020. I’d like to go somewhere else now.

bonbon
April 2, 2022 3:25 am

Never mind!
The EU has a gas backup plan, everything is under control! No climate impact.
So there!

strong-donkeys-ebc-trek.jpg
LdB
Reply to  bonbon
April 2, 2022 4:33 am

That Griff and his mules?

Bill Powers
Reply to  LdB
April 2, 2022 11:55 am

Somebody captured a picture of the lead Jackass, Griff leading loydo and company. It’s a Soros caravan.

John
Reply to  bonbon
April 2, 2022 8:00 am

Add a gathering device to each hind end for further efficiency and recycling.

David Wojick
April 2, 2022 3:29 am

Absent new laws I do not see what role Treasury can play here.

Scissor
Reply to  David Wojick
April 2, 2022 5:36 am

The Treasury can try to explain how the rates of change of debt and debt to GDP are stable and sustainable.

David Wojick
Reply to  Scissor
April 2, 2022 5:57 am

Indeed but that is not about climate change.

ex-KaliforniaKook
Reply to  David Wojick
April 3, 2022 10:48 am

But it has the word ‘sustainable’ in it, and in the new lexicon that is only applicable to things that fall under the Green New Deal. Only communists worship sustainability.

It’s kind of like organic food. Out of curiosity, have any of you eaten inorganic food? At least, since you and your wee friends made and ate mud pies?

Clyde Spencer
Reply to  ex-KaliforniaKook
April 3, 2022 12:03 pm

Words can be very powerful influencers. That is why the left is continually trying to re-define and ban words. They find new uses for scary words like “acid,” and replace pejorative words with (initially) favorable words like “gay” or “people of color.” It becomes comical when the agitators object to words like “colored people,” as in NAACP, (founded in 1909 by African-Americans) and insist the correct words should be “people of color,” or the word de jour.

Old Man Winter
Reply to  David Wojick
April 2, 2022 7:45 am

The purpose of everything being done is to control & monitor the people,
using any excuse necessary. Beware the digital dollar!

Richard Page
Reply to  David Wojick
April 2, 2022 9:22 am

If it’s anything like what’s happening in other US federal institutions they’ll take existing laws, bend them into interesting new shapes, then use them as a club to beat industries and energy providers with.

Bill Powers
Reply to  Richard Page
April 2, 2022 11:51 am

As Reagan would say if it moves tax it, it if keeps moving regulate it and if it stops moving subsidize it.

meab
Reply to  Bill Powers
April 2, 2022 5:20 pm

Reagan was mocking big Government. What he actually said was “Government’s view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it.”

Ron Long
April 2, 2022 3:31 am

The bad part is that these self-righteous (dumb? dishonest? delusional?) CAGW woke idiots will do actual damage before enough voters change the political scenario, starting in November 2022 and ending in November 2024. This damage will be felt mostly by the same voters that went for this Brandon nonsense, so be it. It is difficult to imagine the Defense Department being directed to make “fighting against climate change” a priority.

David Wojick
Reply to  Ron Long
April 2, 2022 5:59 am

Happily they are not doing much actual damage. Biden’s climate agenda is going roughly nowhere.

Old Man Winter
Reply to  Ron Long
April 2, 2022 8:12 am

Recently, Brandon really mangled the European trip by making major gaffes
that could have started WWIII & had to be walked back. Giggles can’t even
get it right using a teleprompter & I haven’t seen Nancy in awhile. Even with
Brandon’s low ratings, they’re stuck with him as the other two are worse than
him. With the Hunter Biden scandal & Russiagate lying ahead, as well as
other problems growing worse daily, it almost seems as if they’re trying to
start a war or do something else to find an excuse to declare an emergency
that will give him dictatorial powers & possibly even call off the 2022
elections so they don’t lose power as they know they will. I’ve already
discounted the possibility they’ll have total control by 2024 & cancel the
elections. I think they’re at a point of no return as they have done a lot of
extreme things & if they don’t push forward now, it will take 4-8 yrs to get
back to their current position from which they can push forward again.. I hope
I’m wrong!

The only other alternate scenario I can offer is that they’re so arrogant/greedy
that it’s blinded them to their own stupidity. Recently, they’ve been making a
lot of mistakes & have been openly stating their plans which people are
rejecting. (Despite their lies, people are blaming Brandon for high gas prices,
etc.) Either way, I wouldn’t trust anything they do.

Scissor
Reply to  Old Man Winter
April 2, 2022 8:38 am

The good news is that whoever is really in charge will want to maintain their controlled illusions because having to install an open dictatorship brings with it immense uncertainty.

Tombstone Gabby
Reply to  Ron Long
April 2, 2022 10:59 am

G’Day Ron,

“… before enough voters change the political scenario …”

The URL takes you to a list of election results. Many democrats elected. The ‘kicker’ is the very low voter turnout.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/results-saturdays-elections-northeast-louisiana-031820401.html

Don’t believe the ‘landslide’ poll reports, every vote will be needed. Any eligible voter who didn’t vote shouldn’t complain afterwards.

Clyde Spencer
Reply to  Ron Long
April 3, 2022 12:04 pm

An invisible enemy!

Gerry, England
April 2, 2022 4:30 am

These actions will position the economy for strong and sustainable growth consistent with a net-zero emissions future.

When will enough people understand that this is an impossible dream and that ‘growth’ and ‘net-zero’ are complete opposites.

John
Reply to  Gerry, England
April 2, 2022 8:02 am

Sustainable growth to them is a vastly shrinking population.

Scissor
Reply to  John
April 2, 2022 8:39 am

Yeah, the equations don’t balance.

Chaswarnertoo
Reply to  John
April 3, 2022 3:15 am

That’s a feature, not a glitch.

Kevin kilty
Reply to  Gerry, England
April 2, 2022 8:31 am

One of the best quotations recently describing this shallow thinking that leads to voting for idiots is from the CEO of BASF. It is about the Russian gas supply, but applies to all else.

“Many have misconceptions. I notice that in many of the conversations I have. People often make no connection at all between a boycott and their own job. As if our economy and our prosperity were set in stone.”

Gregory Woods
Reply to  Gerry, England
April 2, 2022 9:36 am

‘Dream’ or Nightmare?

Gary Pearse
Reply to  Gerry, England
April 2, 2022 11:10 am

Naziro is a better fit than Net Zero. When the nightmare is over there will be trials for this one would hope. Their plan is patently unachievable let alone “unsustainable”. And Never Again legislation will be passed.

We’ve were warned by the framers of the US Constitution and by President Eisenhower of the need for vigilance to defend freedoms. Things were taken for granted. After this, no more. Job one is to completely overhaul and enshrine purpose in education K to PhD, the latter asterisked where it’s clear they can’t perform at this level. This includes professors. Some might be offered a new B.A. and allowed to apply for graduate school. All Grant’s and funds should be stopped to Universities until they accept a cleaning out of the multiplicity of dummy faculties and shrink back to scholarly standards.

Gary Pearse
Reply to  Gary Pearse
April 2, 2022 12:55 pm

I intended to add that Asian and Russian universities never had this great destruction of education. They have made education top priority. To fail to compete vigorously with them is the real existential threat. Both have space exploration capabilities and plans.

I even looked into universities in India and Japan for a very smart grandson of mine and was very pleasantly surprised. The Indian Institute of Technology Bombay and The Undian Institute of Science Bangalore are top notch and have tuitions of $5,000 and estimated living costs of $3200 for a year! U of Tokyo, Osaka U and Kyoto U tops in Japan, also cheap and over 50% of foreign students get scholarships for post grad! Compare that with a corrupted poison ivy league school diluted with diversity perversity playdough in their safe places.

Clyde Spencer
Reply to  Gary Pearse
April 3, 2022 12:11 pm

It has been my experience that the very brightest, which used to be the only ones going on to college, usually manage to do well in spite of what the schools do.

Clyde Spencer
Reply to  Gary Pearse
April 3, 2022 12:15 pm

I was flabbergasted to discover that a local university that you probably have never heard of — University of Dayton — has a tuition of $22,000/semester, plus books, lab fees, etc. Most higher education institutions have become diploma mills that have watered down their requirements in order to attract a large number of students that might actually be able to graduate — typically with a huge student loan debt.

fretslider
April 2, 2022 4:37 am

Treasury’s first Climate Counselor… A counsellor?

The Climate Counselor

Therapy / Activism 
Julie Wald

I help individuals who are experiencing climate-related anxiety and grief, get support.

https://theclimatecounselor.com/index.html

It’s utterly bonkers stuff, but then what’s new?

In the UK fracking was banned and although the wells have been granted a stay of execution until June 2023 to ‘prove themselves’ it’s hard to see how that will be possible.

“The British Geological Survey doesn’t record earthquakes below 2.0. According to academic scientists, a magnitude of 2.3 would be smaller than ‘a small pumpkin dropping to the floor’ (which is 2.61, if you’re curious).

Incredibly, a seismic threshold was then set by the UK government at 0.5, which was greeted with widespread astonishment by the industry. As one industry expert recently pointed out: ‘The threshold set is 12 times lower than a quarry-blasting limit and 30 times less than for some construction activities. Sir Ed Davey, the leader of the Liberal Democrats, boasted about his part in setting these ridiculously low limits.’

https://www.spiked-online.com/2022/03/15/the-bbcs-fake-news-about-fracking/

http://datacat.liverpool.ac.uk/609/2/Seismic%20Context%20Measurements.pdf

This is all about how you feel, not what is known.

bonbon
Reply to  fretslider
April 2, 2022 6:32 am

It is too easy to dismiss the feelz crowd as bonkers.
If you dare, have a look at how President Putin’s economics advisor Glazyev, sees it, last week :
“Events like this happen once a century”: Sergey Glazyev on the breakdown of epochs and changing ways of life
https://canadianpatriot.org/2022/03/30/events-like-this-happen-once-a-century-sergey-glazyev-on-the-breakdown-of-epochs-and-changing-ways-of-life/

The second scenario of possible development of events is similar to the one that Hitler wanted to implement during the change of previous world economic structures. This is an attempt to create a world government with a superhuman ideology. If Hitler thought of the German nation as superhumans, then the current ideologists of world domination impose a transition to a post-humanoid state on humanity. In contrast to the posthumanism of the West, the core countries of the new world economic order are characterized by a socialist ideology, albeit with respect for private interests, protection of private property and the use of market mechanisms.
….
There is a complete epoch breakdown happening right now, and there is an attempt to create a superhuman race, easily dismissed as Woke.

fretslider
Reply to  bonbon
April 2, 2022 6:59 am

It is too easy to dismiss the feelz crowd as bonkers.”

It’s exceedingly easy to describe what a woman is.

Clyde Spencer
Reply to  fretslider
April 3, 2022 12:21 pm

The ‘people’ who are usually capable of becoming pregnant, at least when they are young. I guess that with the newly promoted definition of a woman, they lose their special status of being a woman and just become a ‘people’ after menopause.

meab
Reply to  bonbon
April 2, 2022 5:40 pm

More bullshit from Bonobo, the brainwashed Marxist. He references an organization formed by Helga Zepp-LaRouche, the widow of the nut, Lyndon LaRouche. Their mission is to get Canada to join China’s New Silk Road, a transparent effort to increase China’s power.

The only good thing about Helga is she calls the climate crisis scam a “Satanic Swindle”.

mega weld
April 2, 2022 5:05 am

The green energy zealots want a “Star Trek Economy”. Unfortunately, as a society we are no where near having anything that that type of society needs, mainly an abundance of free and low maintaince energy. A politically mature population that believes that foundation of a free society rests of the voluntary interactions of members. Of course the list is long, but what the left is force feeding society will be vomited up in the worst kind of violence in the future.

Ewin Barnett
April 2, 2022 5:18 am
kakatoa
April 2, 2022 5:36 am

CA approach to de-carbonizing its grid seems to have hit a roadblock/snag/reality as last month’s curtailments blasted through the previous record and last years carbon intensity headed south (as the” ISO GHG savings” was 30% less in 2021 than in 2020) as well.

https://www.caiso.com/Documents/2021Statistics.pdf

mkelly
April 2, 2022 6:00 am

I don’t understand how companies that depend on consumers have the free ability to travel can support ideas like this.

All cruise ship companies will disappear. Tourism disappears. RV companies. Freight forwarders. Caterpillar, John Deere etc. Pick an industry.

Roads will crumble as no asphalt will be produced and concrete will be out or restricted due to CO2.

RevJay4
Reply to  mkelly
April 2, 2022 7:01 am

Until the folks who actually own the companies, expressing their “wokeness”, take action against the titular heads of those companies they will not retract their silliness. That action may involve a few CEOs, etc. being fired or worse before there is a wholesale turnaround.
The “elite” don’t care how the industries fare, as they feel they will survive and rule the peasants in the end. The end may actually be a replacement of the elites, which they have not thought possible until it actually occurs. Just sayin’.

bonbon
Reply to  mkelly
April 2, 2022 7:08 am

With the Great Reset you will own nothing, travel to all exotic islands, over perfect highways or cruise ships – All aboard in Meta, the Zuckerberg World has it all!

This is It From Bit at it’s best!

Old Man Winter
Reply to  mkelly
April 2, 2022 10:36 am

The seemingly illogical union of corporations with the socialist left is easy to
understand if you realize the goal of each is to be a monopoly. So they are
actually two sides of the same coin- internationalist monopolists. With
wokesters now running companies, they think their insane ideas are morally
superior & will actually work & lead them to Nirvana, when the exact opposite
is true. It takes a lot of self-righteous arrogance to be that blinded to the truth
as it isn’t just a lack of brain power.

Ted
Reply to  mkelly
April 2, 2022 7:32 pm

You confuse real net-zero with political net-zero. The real version would be a complete shutdown of the economy. The political version just means the connected will be allowed to purchase indulgences in the form of ‘protected forests’ or ‘carbon offsets’ so that if you donate to the correct politician, the bureacracy will support youre comapny while hassling your competition.

Clyde Spencer
Reply to  mkelly
April 3, 2022 12:24 pm

Tourism disappears.

Which is extremely important to many small countries, not the least of which is New Zealand.

Duane
April 2, 2022 6:11 am

They can create all the “policy statements” they like but under the U.S. Constitution all policy is made by Congress, via enacting laws and appropriating funds each year. The role of the administrative branch is merely to “faithfully execute the Laws of the United States of America.” As adjudicated in the event of any dispute by the Federal courts, up to the Supreme Court.

Every new administration comes into office proclaiming that they are making new policies. Those parties who are negatively impacted by the new policies always sue, the courts take years through litigation and appeals up to SCOTUS. The present SCOTUS makeup is not conducive to making radical policy changes, and particularly will not allow any “whole of government” programs that are not directly and specifically authorized by Congress in enacted laws.

With Congress being essentially evenly divided between the two parties, and a split Congress very likely after the mid-term elections in seven months, there will be no such whole of government program actually carried out to force the warmunist agenda on America.

Count on it.

And this, by the way, is the genius of our Constitution with its separation of powers and checks and balances. It greatly constrains radicalism in our government.

william Johnston
Reply to  Duane
April 2, 2022 6:48 am

This is assuming that the court follows the Constitution.

Duane
Reply to  william Johnston
April 2, 2022 6:48 pm

Supreme Courts do generally enforce the Constitution, as the justices interpret if. Differences of interpretation lead to different judicial outcomes. Which is inevitable, since the Constitution is a roadmap and is not a detailed description of all desired outcomes.

SCOTUS has its own constraints and checks to its powers. Justices are appointed by Presidents and confirmed by the Senate. SCOTUS cannot make law, only interpret and enforce the law. SCOTUS cannot act without a “ripe” case to adjudicate. And what one SCOTUS does can be undone by a later SCOTUS.

bonbon
Reply to  Duane
April 2, 2022 7:05 am

Not sure if the Constitution ever mentions parties.

Don Perry
Reply to  bonbon
April 2, 2022 8:20 am

George Washington warned us of the problems associated with parties and factions.

“The alternate domination of one faction over another, sharpened by the spirit of revenge, natural to party dissension, which in different ages and countries has perpetrated the most horrid enormities, is itself a frightful despotism. But this leads at length to a more formal and permanent despotism. The disorders and miseries which result gradually incline the minds of men to seek security and repose in the absolute power of an individual; and sooner or later the chief of some prevailing faction, more able or more fortunate than his competitors, turns this disposition to the purposes of his own elevation, on the ruins of public liberty.”

Duane
Reply to  bonbon
April 2, 2022 6:42 pm

The Constitution does not address parties, but it deals with them indirectly and structurally by its separation of powers and it’s checks and balances. The powers are divested to the three branches of the Federal government, the States, and the People.

Dave Fair
Reply to  Duane
April 2, 2022 8:21 am

Duane, you underestimate the power of the Deep state. IIRC, 90+% of Federal DC employees voting voted Democrat. That defines a one-party state.

Duane
Reply to  Dave Fair
April 2, 2022 6:50 pm

“Deep state” is a Trumpian fantasy. Bureaucrats are not the power in our government. The real power is our Constitution.

Dave Fair
Reply to  Duane
April 2, 2022 8:54 pm

Duane, have you worked in the Federal government? I have at a fairly high level with some time in DC. Just the latest Deep State overreach is the SEC jumping into companies’ governance. How about the Fed deciding people shouldn’t invest in FF development.

It takes years for SCOTUS to catch up with the unconstitutional hijinks of the bureaucrats. Also, how about the “deference” SCOTUS provides to Federal agencies?

Beta Blocker
Reply to  Duane
April 2, 2022 8:58 am

The Congress has granted considerable power to the Executive Branch over the last eighty years in the areas of financial regulation, national security, and environmental protection.

The courts have generally upheld the use of that granted power in a number of instances. Not always, but most of the time.

The Biden administration has not gone nearly as far as it might go in using its existing authorities for pushing its climate change agenda — if it were to integrate and coordinate those various authorities using a comprehensive strategic plan.

Many on this forum expect to see the Republicans take control of Congress in 2023.

If the Republicans do take control in 2023, and If the Biden administration then decides to pursue a highly aggressive strategic plan for pushing its climate change agenda, then we should expect Biden to push his existing authorities in the areas of financial regulation, national security, and environmental protection to their maximum limits.

And possibly beyond.

Retired_Engineer_Jim
Reply to  Beta Blocker
April 2, 2022 9:11 am

Cannot Congress take back those delegated authorities?

Beta Blocker
Reply to  Retired_Engineer_Jim
April 2, 2022 9:35 am

Retired_Engineer_Jim: “Cannot Congress take back those delegated authorities?”

Only if the Congress has enough votes to override a presidential veto of the disabling legislation which removes those various and long-standing grants of authority.

If the Republicans do take control of the Congress in 2023, it is highly unlikely they will have a veto-proof majority.

And so it is my expectation to see the very real threat of extreme unilateral action by the Executive Branch being used as leverage in keeping the Republicans on board with some level of federal spending on the Green New Deal.

Duane
Reply to  Beta Blocker
April 2, 2022 7:05 pm

Nonsense

Duane
Reply to  Retired_Engineer_Jim
April 2, 2022 7:03 pm

Congress does not want to take more responsibility for detailed rule making because if they did the government would be grossly overloaded and come to screeching halt. There are just 535 Congressmen and Senators, but the bureaucracy has in excess of 2 million employees.

Delegating the details to the bureaucracy is the only practical means of government. Congress then relies upon the courts to rein in the bureaucrats when they go beyond their authority. Which happens often.

ex-KaliforniaKook
Reply to  Duane
April 3, 2022 2:22 pm

While it doesn’t make that much difference, those 535 people have staff that inflates their capacity to at least 5000 people.

There was a story I read from multiple sources as a kid that stated G. Washington wanted the seat of Government where it is now (D.C.). reason: too hot and muggy in the summer, too cold in the winter for Congress to meet, leaving them only six months of the year to meddle in the affairs of the citizenry.

I am one of those who believe we have way too much government now. When they have time for silliness like AGW, pushing 37 genders, determining which technologies should be supported and which should be blocked… they just have too much time on their hands.

Duane
Reply to  Beta Blocker
April 2, 2022 6:58 pm

Courts routinely block and overrule administration programs and policies. Happens every day and to every single controversial program and policy, because every such controversial program and policy results in litigation that the courts must adjudicate. It takes years to go thru the litigation, such that by the time a final ruling is issued by SCOTUS, administrations have likely changed hands again. We American voters routinely flip and flop party control of both Houses of Congress and the White House, often splitting party control of the branches.

This flip flopping frustrates the “true believers” in the parties, but pleases centrists and moderates who do not trust either party to run the show. Virtually every time one party gains control of both Houses of Congress and the White House, we voters change sides in the very next election.

All of this serves to prevent radical takeovers by anyone or either major party.

Duane
Reply to  Beta Blocker
April 2, 2022 7:08 pm

Biden’s authorities are what the Federal courts decide are his authorities. That’s how our government works. And Congress really controls the show anyway. Presidents can’t pass laws or fund the government – only Congress can do that. No funds, nothing can happen. It’s always about the money.

Beta Blocker
Reply to  Duane
April 3, 2022 7:42 am

The courts have already decided that the EPA has the authority to directly regulate America’s carbon emissions under the Clean Air Act. It is an authority which has never been used to its maximum possible effectiveness.

Other authorities have been granted to the Executive Branch in the areas of financial regulation and national security which have also withstood numerous challenges in the courts.

Those authorities can be creatively combined with environmental protection authorities in a way which can be very effective for the task of quickly reducing America’s consumption of fossil fuels.

What we have seen over the last fourteen months since the new administration was inaugurated is that we should take the Biden administration at its word when it says that it will apply an all-of-government approach in pursuing its anti carbon agenda.

Clyde Spencer
Reply to  Duane
April 3, 2022 12:43 pm

However, the courts can’t be forced to deal with something if they don’t feel it is ‘ripe,’ and they can rule that the complainant has no standing, as notably happened recently.

Old Man Winter
Reply to  Duane
April 2, 2022 9:41 am

Despite our Constitution being great, an evil people with evil intent can
always find ways around it. If you have been following Russiagate & the
Hunter Biden scandal, it’s blatantly obvious that our Intel community & the
MSM, whose should be opposing government tyranny, are fully woke & are
working against us. This is also true of all the other governmental agencies
As you can see, many lies were told & crimes were committed & yet they
were powerful enough to keep the truth under wraps so nothing would be
done about it. Also, a lot of RINOs were part of the corruption &
shenanigans, also running interference to hide the truth.

Since things aren’t going well recently, with Brandon’s gaffes & Giggle;s
inability to read a teleprompter, they may panic & create a phony crisis-
Wuhan flu, energy, climate, civil disobedience, war, etc. to be able to declare
an emergency which would give them powers to control & monitor people to
the point of delaying/cancelling the 2022 election. With these power hungry
people, everything is an option.

Even with an election, they may still be able to move forward, but not as
quickly. Brandon may use Executive Orders to get what he wants.The
Supreme Court is too wishy-washy & will let him get away with it. He has
already brazenly ignored court orders so he may ignore them again making it
almost impossible to stop him. We’re at a place where our government no
longer protects us & is actually our. So relying on the Constitution to
save us will be futile.

It will definitely require a lot of citizen participation through protests & people
pushing back at the local level which is something conservatives &
libertarians normally don’t do. Unfortunately, if we don’t, they’ll just keep
marching forward with their nastiness. On top of that, they have already
labeled us as evil deniers, racists, “Typhoid Marys”, etc., so anything they do
to stop us will be considered reasonable & justifiable, as it was with the
Canadian truckers. It will definitely be a hard slog to stop this garbage!

As an aside, it will pay to research the Ukrainian situation as you will find
there was a lot of corruption involving the Big Guy & others which may give
you better insight into what is really going on there & with Russia. It will
definitely be an eye opener if you haven’t already researched it.

Duane
Reply to  Old Man Winter
April 2, 2022 7:04 pm

You are spouting conspiratorial nonsense.

Clyde Spencer
Reply to  Duane
April 3, 2022 12:50 pm

Unless the DOJ gets cut off at the knees by the Big Guy, we will find out whether it is “conspiratorial nonsense” or prescience.

Clyde Spencer
Reply to  Old Man Winter
April 3, 2022 12:45 pm

Since things aren’t going well recently, with Brandon’s FJB’s gaffes & Giggle;s inability to read a teleprompter, …

The real Brandon doesn’t deserve to be insulted by associating him with the one who deserves our ire.

Clyde Spencer
Reply to  Duane
April 3, 2022 12:37 pm

… under the U.S. Constitution all policy is made by Congress, via enacting laws and appropriating funds each year.

However, Congress often turns a blind eye to the Constitution. Article I specifically forbids Congress from funding a standing army for a period greater than two years. When was that last observed? A strict interpretation only supports continuous funding of the Navy and Marines, and possibly an Air Force since it ‘sails’ craft through an ocean of air. The needs of an Army was supposed to be met with a Militia, except possibly during a war.

And then there are the all too common Executive Orders and (non)treaties that are frequently unconstitutional, and never challenged by Congress.

bonbon
April 2, 2022 6:23 am

Missing, strangely enough, is any mention of this :
Financial firms announce $130 trillion in commitments for climate transition, but practical questions loom
https://www.washingtonpost.com/us-policy/2021/11/03/climate-glasgow-bloomberg-carney/

Morton stars in that report – it is all about the $130 TRILLION, ruthlessly, relentlessly pursued by UN Climate czar, ex-Bank of England chief Mark Carney at COP26 which ended in Sharma’s pathetic whimper that he could not ,sob, sob, deliver.

The “practical questions looming” have obviously sent the NetZero perps to the rubber room, who now need counseling by John E. Morton, while they bounce around muttering $130 TRILLION…..

Scissor
Reply to  bonbon
April 2, 2022 6:52 am

With inflation, we likely will be talking about quadrillions around 2030.

I remember when a dime was a lot of money to me. I felt lucky to find a penny on the sidewalk. Now, the Treasury is in a difficult position when it costs more to make coins than their denominations. Reality will hold some outrageous practices in check.

bonbon
Reply to  Scissor
April 2, 2022 7:03 am

Some say use Synthetic Digital Central Bank currencies, the ultimate It from Bit – to paraphrase the Big Bang physicist John Archibald Wheeler in the ’60’s.
Replacing a physical economy my with information has de-industrialized the US.

Scissor
Reply to  bonbon
April 2, 2022 8:46 am

Yes.

The U.S. is still in perhaps the best position of any nation to lead. I just read that Gazprom has halted its natural gas transport to Germany. It remains to be seen whether lessons are learned.

bonbon
Reply to  Scissor
April 2, 2022 9:05 am

The Petrodollar is past its use-by-date. Countries are moving to Multipolar currency systems. Unipolar is finished. D.C. has not yet gotten the memo. If they send Euro/Dollar reserves by return mail all hell will break loose, financially and economically in the EU/USA. This is what is going on right now.

Dave Andrews
Reply to  Scissor
April 2, 2022 8:33 am

Money seems to mean nothing to the net zero crowd. In Nov 2021 the IEA published a Tracking Report on smart grids which said worldwide

‘Meeting net zero goals will require an investment surge’

“Funding for smart grids must increase sharply.Annual electricity networks investments need to triple to an average of USD 800 billion by the late 2020s and investments in digital assets must increase eightfold, at more than twice the speed of total investments in transmission and distribution”

They didn’t specify where the money was coming from nor how all the other costs of net zero were simultaneously to be met.

Scissor
Reply to  Dave Andrews
April 2, 2022 12:40 pm

I think models would show that eventually price inflation of raw materials equals or exceeds the rate at which a currency can be created. Then that currency becomes worthless.

Coach Springer
April 2, 2022 6:44 am

Government is learning coercive powers faster than anyone can even catalog them.

tom hewitt
April 2, 2022 7:38 am

“. . . the Hub will enable Treasury to move nimbly and efficiently in prioritizing climate action.”

A huge government agency is going to “move nimbly and efficiently”? It is to laugh.

tom hewitt
Reply to  tom hewitt
April 2, 2022 8:31 am
Scissor
Reply to  tom hewitt
April 2, 2022 8:48 am

“The bureaucracy expands to meet the needs of the expanding bureaucracy.”

April 2, 2022 9:31 am

What’s going to be interesting is watching how far they get with this insanity before people literally rebel and start stringing up those responsible.

Robert Hanson
Reply to  Mike Haseler (aka Scottish Sceptic)
April 2, 2022 11:00 am

Which is why Congress is pushing the new law making lynching a ‘hate crime”.

Scissor
Reply to  Robert Hanson
April 2, 2022 12:46 pm

Even though we are told that walls don’t work, they are constructing a lot of fences and security walls in DC.

Clyde Spencer
Reply to  Scissor
April 3, 2022 12:58 pm

The thing is, walls work — until they don’t. The rich and powerful have forgotten the lesson that should have been learned from storming the Bastille. It didn’t take long before the French revolutionists took the swords and muskets from the former owners.

The threat of a revolution results in less blood shed than pushing people past their limit and it turns into a real revolution.

Clyde Spencer
Reply to  Robert Hanson
April 3, 2022 12:53 pm

And, Biden is pushing further gun control.

Olen
April 2, 2022 2:06 pm

And where are the people on this. They are proceeding to grab power that is not theirs and in doing so suppress the freedom of citizens. Like the Kings and Robber Barons of the past they are not satisfied with their wealth to live their lives in luxury they intend to grab the wealth of the citizens to do with as they please. And for what, to save the common citizen from the fraud of climate change.

Elections have consequences and so does lethargy. When politicians can control the vote, elections are there for show.

observa
April 2, 2022 7:21 pm

Archaeologists taking the piss with all the Groupthinkers-
Archaeologists declare consensus (cosmosmagazine.com)

observa
April 3, 2022 2:27 am

I see some scientists are increasingly concerned about the political spinning of their research to suit the particular narrative of the day-
Scientists must be free to communicate without politicians’ spin (msn.com)

observa
Reply to  observa
April 3, 2022 4:39 am

OTOH we have Scientist Revolution-
Scientists risk arrest to sound climate alarm (msn.com)

“I am not sure this is our last chance, but time is definitely running out,” said Jordan Cruz, an environmental engineer in Ecuador who studies the devastating impact of mining industries on human communities in the Andes.

They mine lots of copper in the Andes and lots more of it is required for the climate changers electrification revolution you idiot. You gotta dig dig dig stoopids!

Danny 1959
April 3, 2022 6:38 am

Anyone who claims that government taxes and regulation will somehow change the global climate back to something we prefer–is lying to you.

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