Interestingly, he really doesn’t seem to want to pass cap and trade, he just wants to use it for political reasons….hmm, that sounds exactly like what I’ve been saying for years, that “climate change” is primarily a political tool
(CNN) With Republicans in control of both houses of Congress, the odds of passing a climate change bill this year are virtually non-existent. But Rep. Chris Van Hollen, D-Maryland, plans to reintroduce legislation to cap carbon emissions this week, anyway, due in part to the impact it could have on the 2016 election.
“Our goal is to keep attention focused on this issue as we head into this congressional session, and also into the presidential election in 2016,” Van Hollen told CNN, explaining the bill serves as a vehicle for discussion.
Van Hollen’s objective is to force Republicans to address the issue, and he believes they’re slowly coming to the negotiating table. Think Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Massachusetts, and her crusade against income inequality to push Hillary Clinton toward embracing a populist mission as she forms an economic platform for her likely presidential bid.
Again, this is about politics, not actually passing legislation that Democrats really want. They could have rammed through cap and trade during the time they fully controlled Congress, 2009-2010, with a Democrat president, much as they rammed through Stimulus, Obamacare, Dodd-Frank, and many other bills. They chose not too.
Yes, there are squishy Republicans who Believe, and like the idea of more Central Government. But, again, as my long running meme, if all these Warmists really believed that “climate change” will doom us, and Mankind is mostly/solely at fault, they’d practice what they preach rather than attempting to force their beliefs on Other People.
I do not know how sucessful a ploy this will be. Most people do not even know what cap and trade is let alone understand it.
I think the proganda value of this will be minimal. I think he could get better results using some other wedge topic.
It’s a lot like the Teapublicans voting dozens of times to eliminate the ACA.
Healthcare came first. The House passed a cap and trade bill but the 57 Dem Senators could not push it through. Why? The political costs to Lindsey Graham (R-SC) were getting increasingly expensive (thanks Tea Party!). The “incentives” to the energy industry (relaxed nuclear regs, increased offshore drilling) to get their buy-in became politically unpalatable because of the Gulf oil catastrophe. The continuing horrible economy pushed global warming further down the agenda.
teach
I think many people will agree that 2016 will. Be a lot kinderto thDems than was 2014
After almost 2 months what h his cogs been able to do?
Wha can it do with le than 60 votes in the senate and Obama having the veto
Can it learn to compromise ?
Th clock is taking 20 months left
John- proof reading and punctuation are still your friends.