[Pearls Before Swine]

Question — if the U.S. Senate does not ratify a treaty with CO2 restrictions, does Obama’s action have any legal standing?

My understanding is no treaty is binding without Senate approval. In any event, it doesn't matter because the Copenhagen agreements are nonbinding, except for our "moral commitment."

[okie01]

Question — if the U.S. Senate does not ratify a treaty with CO2 restrictions, does Obama’s action have any legal standing?

"My understanding is no treaty is binding without Senate approval. In any event, it doesn't matter because the Copenhagen agreements are nonbinding, except for our "moral commitment."

What both of you are saying is true.

But there's yet another angle to this affair: recall that the SCOTUS foolishly gave the EPA the right to regulate CO2 as a "greenhouse gas".

Thus, the President will be able to independently enforce the nonbinding terms of Copenhagen by directing the EPA -- an agency under his control.

The scheme cuts Congress out of the loop -- and some will object. But so long as there is a Democrat majority, the president can probably do as he wishes.