July 15, 2008

It’s all about power

Expect a sequel

L-W Part II is inevitable, but it will have a less-predicable result. Presidential nominees John McCain and Barack Obama said they support L-W (see p. 88 for an overview of the candidates’ views on energy policy), and one of these two senators will sit in the Oval Office come January, when a retooled L-W is brought before the 111th Congress. Also consider that next year Democrats may hold as many as 58 Senate seats; Senate rules require 60 votes to close debate and move to a vote, so expect the do-over about this time next year.

Power over power

Affordable, reliable, and available electricity is the lifeblood of this country, fueling both the economy and individual opportunity. Roy Innis, national chairman of the Congress of Racial Equality, pointed to the latter fact in a fiery March 19 speech to the New York City Climate Conference. Innis called affordable energy “an indispensable but neglected civil right.” He eloquently characterized this climate change legislation as “usher[ing] in a new era of energy Jim Crow laws.” His remarks are provocative, but few dispute that large surges in energy prices will be disproportionately felt by those who can least afford it.

My personal opinion is that L-W has little to do with saving the planet or reducing carbon emissions. Misguided legislation, like L-W, is often born of a desire to enhance political and economic power. In this case, a Republican and Independent saw an opportunity to win points for being “responsive” to climate change concerns. That their bill was overflowing with unpalatable (and perhaps unintended) consequences, was of no concern to them.

It may be giving too much credit to the presidential candidates to say that Obama and McCain were wise to be absent for the vote on L-W. Now they can argue that they favor climate change legislation—but something more finely tuned than their colleagues recently proposed.

Those sitting in Congress and the White House next year will have the power to shape the fate of power politics in this country for decades to come. The outcome depends on how they tackle climate change legislation. Let’s hope they know the difference between oil and gas.