Via New York Times:
When Americans elected a Democratic Congress last November, they were voting to end politics as usual and special interest legislation. On the vital issues of energy independence and global warming they are not only in danger of getting more of the same but also, unless Nancy Pelosi and other Democratic leaders step forward, winding up in worse shape than they were under the Republicans.
Exhibit A is a regressive bill drafted by John Dingell, chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, and Rick Boucher, a Virginia Democrat. For starters, the bill would override the recent Supreme Court decision giving the Environmental Protection Agency authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from automobiles, a decision that even President Bush has reluctantly embraced. It would also effectively block efforts by California and 11 other states to regulate and reduce greenhouse gases from vehicles at a time when the states are far ahead of the federal government in dealing with climate change.
We have some advice for Ms. Pelosi that may not work, but is worth a try. Rewind this movie to 1989, when President George H. W. Bush and a Democratic Congress decided to strengthen the Clean Air Act by clamping down harder on the tailpipe emissions that cause smog and acid rain. The automakers said it couldn’t be done, and Mr. Dingell — who had spent the entire decade trying to weaken the law — rose to their defense. Read more...
It's absurd to claim that in the five short months the Democrats have had control of Congress that somehow they are going to do less, or worse, on global warming than George Bush and the Republicans. His performance at the recent G8 Summit has been a national embarrassment, especially in the area of global warming.
