Markey's Moment

American Spectator ^ | 7/6/09

[FromLori]

Congressional advocates of the Waxman-Markey cap-and-trade bill that narrowly passed the House by a vote of 219-212 on June 26 employed bribery to build support for this legislation when they co-opted several corporations by giving them free carbon dioxide emission credits. However, many businesses still balked at lending support to a bill that will impose a crushing energy tax on the American people and cost the economy trillions of dollars. Since bribery didn't work with these recalcitrant companies, Waxman-Markey supporters tried intimidation.

MidAmerican is a $41 billion Iowa-based holding company of seven subsidiaries that own many coal-fired power plants and a growing fleet of wind generation. Warren Buffett is a major investor. Sokol actually endorses a cap on greenhouse gas emissions to combat the unproven global warming threat. However, he opposes the Waxman-Markey bill's trading mechanism because it would impose "a huge and unacceptable double cost on customers." He said consumers first will have to pay for emission allowances, "which will not reduce greenhouse gas emissions by one ounce." Then, consumers will have to pay for new low- or zero-carbon power plants. Under Waxman-Markey, the electricity sector will get 35 percent of the free emission allowances. Sokol says that even with those allowances, MidAmerican would still have to raise rates on customers by 12 to 28 percent for a cumulative cost of $800 million. And that is just the first year that the cap goes into effect. The caps will get increasingly stricter over time and the free emission allowances will be phased out. Sokol says the cost of compliance could possibly increase market prices by two to four times.

Prior to the hearing, Sokol also stated that a cap-and-trade system will add at least $120 per month to the average family's electric bill.

[Redgirl]

Markey Mark Malarkey

[freekitty]

Demb. Selling out for a phony carbon credit. How stupid can you be?

[Seadog Bytes]

[GBA]

Thug politics hooks up with the religious jihad of global warming to rape and behead tax payers. How is it we have all forgotten that politicians work for us at our discretion? To paraphrase a Bill Cosby line, we put them into office and we can take them out.

[Sparky1776]

Markey? I think I saw his face on the milk carton this morning.

[Anti-Bubba182]

"...Sokol also stated that a cap-and-trade system will add at least $120 per month to the average family's electric bill..."

People will go ape if they get bills like that! They will be in front of Congress with Tar and Feathers.

[FromLori]

You seem to be the only one who caught that though I do not think many read it. I would like to see people joining together with tar and feathers but I kind of doubt we will.