Climate Change Bill Hits Senate With Little Chance For Success

Wednesday, after months of partisan bickering and also the peevish defection of one of its main sponsors, the Senate climate change bill was unveiled. Senators of Massachusetts, John Kerry, and Joe Lieberman, independent of Connecticut, presented a climate and energy package designed to limit climate change and promote clean energy jobs. Kerry said it was imperative the Senate climate change bill, which includes just a little something for everybody, gets passed this year. But one of the vote-getting surprises in the climate bill is expanded off-shore drilling -- a provision that could backfire easily in the wake of the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

Not a good climate for change

Negotiations with lawmakers by Kerry and Senator Lindsey Graham, Republican of South Carolina, on the climate and energy bill appeared to be humming along until just last month. Graham abruptly withdrew his support of the energy legislation under pressure from GOP true believers. Right Wing enforcers seemed to be angry with Graham for giving the Democrats what seemed to be installment loans of Republican support. Graham gave an oblique reference to immigration politics as an excuse. Sadly, numerous Republican votes left with Graham.

Stained by oil is clean energy

Written into the bill was incentives to increase domestic offshore drilling right after the oil spill within the Gulf of Mexico erupted last month. The New York Times reports that rather than providing for a broad expansion of offshore drilling, the Kerry-Lieberman bill gives coastal states the right to veto any drilling plan that could cause environmental or economic harm. Graham was a part of the original drafting of the oil drilling provision.

Energy legislation and a big crowd

A swarm of lobbyists are attracted by the Senate Climate change bill. Oil companies have spent millions to derail the climate and energy package. Clean energy producers in low-carbon nuclear power, natural gas or wind and solar power are trying to enrich themselves with the Senate climate bill. Reuters reports that green energy utilities such as FPL Group and Exelon have lobbied alongside environmental groups for the climate change bill, along with General Electric, a manufacturer of clean coal for power plants and wind turbines.

Green jobs, clean energy

Kerry's presentation of the Senate climate change bill had along with it a blog on the Huffington Post asking for public support. Kerry claims the climate and energy bill package will help create nearly 2 million new green energy jobs, develop new products, and support the research and development required to help the U.S. maintain leadership within the global economy. He also claims the climate bill as written will reduce the deficit by about $21 billion in nine years.

Senate and Climate Change?

Kerry conveys a sense of urgency for clean energy and green energy jobs, saying it’s long overdue for America to lead on climate change. He says that he will certainly mount a “full court press” to pass the energy legislation in 2010. But Kerry also wants to add pressure to a Congress paralyzed from dealing with the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, financial reform, immigration reform, an upcoming Supreme Court nomination battle and a sputtering economic recovery.

Resources for the article

The New York Times

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/13/science/earth/13climate.html

Reuters reports

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSN1219978020100512?type=marketsNews

Huffington Post

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/john-kerry/transforming-our-power_b_573303...