Politics

The latest green legislation, lobbying, and activism, from the Hill to the EPA to your hometown

dodd's balls

Democrats toughen up on finance reform. Could it work for clean energy? 1
Posted 11 Mar 2010 5:00 PM by Jonathan Hiskes
A funny thing happened outside the twisted world of Congressional energy politics. Over at the Senate Banking Committee, Chairman Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) announced he’s going to push forward with finance reform and consumer protection bill, even if Republicans don’t want to help. Read More
chewing the scenery

Colbert grows a ‘crisis herb garden’ 1
Posted 11 Mar 2010 7:48 AM by Tom Laskawy
Terrified by an ad for "Survival Seeds," Colbert gets sowing. Read More
A post I am *not* calling "Retrofits for Rednecks," because that would be inappropriate

How to provide relief to rural Americans, create jobs, and lower emissions ... all at once! 6
Posted 10 Mar 2010 3:06 PM by David Roberts
A clever new idea to help rural homeowners increase their energy efficiency becomes a bipartisan, bicameral bill. Wonders never cease! Read More

More Politics

hugo and what army?

How many Venezuelan soldiers does it take to change a lightbulb?
Posted 11 Mar 2010 11:24 AM By Ashley Braun
When the president of Venezuela wants to save energy, he doesn't mess around. It's time to send in the troops! Read More
in the guise of the law

Senators negotiate green economy bill with polluters who deny threat of global warming 1
Posted 11 Mar 2010 11:17 AM By Brad Johnson
As the Kerry-Graham-Lieberman triumvirate works to craft green economy legislation, they’re negotiating with industry lobbyists who deny the threat of global warming. After meeting with President Barack Obama and a dozen industry-friendly lawmakers, the trio of Senate negotiators sat down with representatives of the fossil-based economy. Read More
What would we be without wishful thinking?

How the cap-and-trade controversy could lead to good clean energy policy 9
Posted 11 Mar 2010 11:16 AM By David Roberts
Cap-and-trade has become politically toxic, but the pressure to act on climate and energy remains. Oddly, this may lead to the passage of some great complementary policies. Or I could be deluding myself. Read More
faux-toshop

Big Oil uses fake ‘Americans’ to attack fake ‘energy taxes’ 4
Posted 10 Mar 2010 12:12 PM By Brad Johnson
Big Oil is using fake “Americans” to defend billions in tax subsidies. The American Petroleum Institute is running full-page ads in Politico and Roll Call that attack Congress for “new energy taxes.” Check out the Photoshopped images. Read More
Blanching Out

Farm lobby’s lawyer appointed as Ag Committee’s counsel
Posted 10 Mar 2010 9:13 AM By Tom Laskawy
Ag Committee Chair Blanche Lincoln keeps the revolving door spinning between lobbying groups and government. Read More
nocturnal emissions

Why pricing emissions is the least important policy 12
Posted 9 Mar 2010 3:54 PM By Gar Lipow
Here's some historical perspective on why the public is right, and mainstream environmental groups are wrong. Historically U.S. infrastructure, the basis on which this nation developed, was never some magical response to supply and demand. Read More
stick a never in their cap

Can EPA run a cap-and-trade program? 3
Posted 9 Mar 2010 3:52 PM By Michael A. Livermore
The Obama administration has made very clear that they want Congress, rather than EPA, to take the lead in creating a national response to climate change. Despite their oft-repeated preference for congressional action, recently, EPA head Lisa Jackson had to once again reiterate that the agency had no plans to do a carbon cap. Read More
N'Everglades

Florida Everglades restoration now a bailout for U.S. Sugar 2
Posted 9 Mar 2010 9:39 AM By Tom Laskawy
The disaster that is the Everglades Restoration Project distills much of what's wrong with both corporate and government culture in this country. Read More
pass the pump

American Petroleum tells lawmakers it supports carbon fee because it’s easier to demonize 2
Posted 8 Mar 2010 4:18 PM By Brad Johnson
The effort of Senators John Kerry (D-Mass.), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), and Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) to craft comprehensive clean energy legislation that caps global warming pollution has brought some positive words from Big Oil and their political allies. In particular, the senators are considering a proposal by ConocoPhillips, BP America, and Exxon Mobil to exclude petroleum producers and refiners from a carbon market and instead levy a carbon fee. Read More
Is it a problem that more industry groups are meeting with key regulatory officials than enviros?
Posted 8 Mar 2010 3:25 PM By Michael A. Livermore
Some small hope has been renewed for a climate change bill out of Congress this year. But if the legislative process fails to produce a law, Obama's regulatory levers will become more and more important -- and how they evaluate new rules will come under scrutiny. Read More
A leakly story

Don’t buy Obama’s greenwashing of nuclear power 36
Posted 8 Mar 2010 2:10 PM By Erich Pica
Last month, inspectors found dangerous chemicals in the groundwater near the Vermont Yankee nuclear reactor. The situation demonstrates that from the mining of uranium ore to the storage of radioactive waste, nuclear reactors remain as dirty, risky, and as costly as they ever were. If President Obama's recent enthusiasm for nuclear reactors has led you to believe otherwise, you've bought in to the administration's greenwashing of nuclear. Read More
Oh, behave!

Using behavioral science to make smarter energy policy 56
Posted 8 Mar 2010 11:20 AM By David Roberts
In fighting climate change, changing behavior is as important as changing technology. Yet behavioral science is neglected relative to technology R&D. Everyone understands the importance of scaling up wind, solar, and geothermal power, but when was the last time you heard a policymaker or pundit talk about scaling up the practical application of knowledge about how human beings think, interact, and make decisions? A new paper in Science argues for taking such knowledge seriously. Read More
Why are women being left out of climate decision-making? 6
Posted 8 Mar 2010 8:25 AM By Elizabeth Becker , Suzanne Ehlers
Why not structure climate bills to win popular support? 5
Posted 5 Mar 2010 1:42 PM By Gar Lipow
Murkowski to Senate: Drill the Arctic or my state gets it!
Posted 5 Mar 2010 11:50 AM By Daniel J. Weiss
Are GMOs the ‘financial innovations’ of agriculture? 3
Posted 5 Mar 2010 10:00 AM By Tom Laskawy
What to do when haters diss livable communities 3
Posted 4 Mar 2010 3:30 PM By Ashley Braun
Stupid things senators are saying about the Kerry, Graham, and Lieberman proposal 21
Posted 4 Mar 2010 2:41 PM By David Roberts
Sen. Blanche Lincoln faces a challenger from the left, but is he any better on the environment? 3
Posted 4 Mar 2010 2:17 PM By Samantha Thompson
Murkowski wants to save Alaska by destroying it 2
Posted 4 Mar 2010 1:42 PM By Brad Johnson
The ‘energy-only’ bill and Byron Dorgan’s deficit hypocrisy 2
Posted 3 Mar 2010 11:28 AM By David Roberts
Myths and realities of cap-and-trade
Posted 3 Mar 2010 11:09 AM By Eric de Place