For those under the impression that the events of the past few days represent an exciting opportunity for new course for our country, even reason to hope again -- well, meet Rep. John Dingell, the new head of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce. In an interview on Wednesday, he gave a preview of what we might expect:
Rep. John Dingell, who has been a U.S. lawmaker since 1955, also gave a strong indication of what he did not plan to do: raise fuel-efficiency standards for U.S. automobiles ... Dingell, whose home district includes Detroit's big three automakers -- Ford Motor Co., General Motors Corp., and Chrysler Group -- downplayed the need for boosting U.S. fuel economy rules.
"I'm not sure that there's any urgent needs for us to address those questions," Dingell told CNBC in an interview ...
Dingell also spoke favorably of boosting electricity produced from nuclear reactors, and called on Congress to solve the problem of where utilities can store spent nuclear fuel, which is piling up at 131 sites in 39 states while the fate of an underground repository in Nevada remains uncertain.
Dingell called nuclear energy "one of the most promising and necessary courses that we can take in terms of weaning ourselves off foreign oil."
Someone give Dingell a ringle and tell him the Cheney energy plan needs no help from his sorry ass.
Henry Waxman’s decade-long fight to improve the Clean Air Act
Caption needed! UPDATE: Caption found
Dingell joins Republicans in calling cap-and-trade an ‘energy tax’
Comments
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kmp Posted 5:38 am
09 Nov 2006
Sigh. Well, we know all Dems are not "green" and certainly it would be unlikely for any politican from Michigan to piss off the Big Three, but..... it seems early to rain on my parade.
So, sue me for not paying enough attention in 5th grade social studies class, but how do we determine, upon a shift in power in the House/Senate, who is next in line to chair whatever Committee?
Kaela
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David Roberts Posted 7:56 am
09 Nov 2006
[link]
If the environmental movement was actually a movement, it would join together immediately in a unified bid to pressure Dingell into committing to a few simple goals -- boosted fuel efficiency, a carbon tax, and cuts to fossil fuel subsidies would be my choices. But of course it's not a movement, it's a bunch of disparate voices jabbering at cross-purposes, and Dingell will face absolutely no censure for sucking up to sclerotic American automakers. Sigh. The honeymoon is already over.
www.grist.org
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kmp Posted 4:12 am
10 Nov 2006
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