Feenix566
02-03-2009, 02:09 PM
Environmentalists Press Democrats With ‘Non-Negotiable Demands’
By Laura Litvan and Catherine Dodge
Feb. 3 (Bloomberg) -- Environmental groups are racking up a series of early wins thanks to expanded Democratic majorities in the U.S. Congress. But they aren’t satisfied, and the scope of their agenda may cause headaches for party leaders.
Environmentalists want Congress to cap greenhouse-gas emissions, a proposal meeting resistance from companies such as General Motors Corp. because of its cost. They’re pushing for laws to force public utilities to buy 15 percent of their power from renewable energy sources, an idea opposed by Southern Co. and American Electric Power Co. And they want tougher energy- efficiency standards for cars, buildings and appliances.
“They have high expectations and non-negotiable demands,” James Lucier, an energy analyst at Capital Alpha Partners LLC in Washington, said of the groups, which include the Sierra Club, Friends of the Earth and the League of Conservation Voters.
The tension will soon become apparent. More than 2,000 protesters are planning a March 2 sit-in at a coal-fired plant that produces power for the U.S. Capitol, as part of a drive to get support for climate-change legislation.
While organizations such as the Sierra Club and Friends of the Earth are leading the charge, some new, more left-leaning partners are joining the fray.
The antiwar group Code Pink is training some of its ire on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a California Democrat, and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Nevada Democrat.
“They keep saying, ‘We want more of a majority,’ so they’ve got a bigger majority now,” said Medea Benjamin, a co- founder of Code Pink. “We expect more concrete results.”
Passage by 2009
Reid and Pelosi say they want to move climate-change legislation through Congress this year. That goal may be more realistic now, with Barack Obama in the White House and Representative Henry Waxman heading the House Energy and Commerce Committee. Waxman, who backs stringent climate-change goals, replaced John Dingell of Michigan -- the auto industry’s closest ally in Congress -- as the panel’s chairman.
Pelosi last month praised Waxman’s plan for his committee to vote by Memorial Day, May 25.
“I share his sense of urgency,” she said in a statement.
That urgency is also felt by environmentalists. With Democrats holding 58 of 100 Senate seats and with a 77-seat advantage in the House of Representatives, they want to seize the moment. And they haven’t been placated by recent victories.
The Senate last month approved a $10 billion conservation plan setting aside more than 2 million acres of natural wilderness and protecting 1,000 miles of scenic rivers.
A portion of the spending in an $819 billion economic- stimulus measure approved by the House last week is geared toward renewable-energy projects, including $6.2 billion to weatherize low-income homes.
Obama Backs California
And Obama last week signed an executive order opening the way for California and other states to limit greenhouse-gas emissions from cars and trucks, standards opposed by GM and Ford Motor Co. as too expensive, especially given the depth of the recession.
Lobbyists at environmental groups say they can build on that momentum to get climate-change legislation through before an international summit in December in Copenhagen with hopes of reaching a global accord. Obama has pledged to cut greenhouse gases by 80 percent from 1990 levels in 2050.
“We’re very hopeful about the prospect of climate-change legislation in 2009,” said Michael Goo, legislative director for the Natural Resources Defense Council’s climate change center.
http://bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601109&sid=awfEVQGtBzJo&refer=home
It just gets better and better... This is what happens when the GOP runs a candidate who can't win in the general election.
By Laura Litvan and Catherine Dodge
Feb. 3 (Bloomberg) -- Environmental groups are racking up a series of early wins thanks to expanded Democratic majorities in the U.S. Congress. But they aren’t satisfied, and the scope of their agenda may cause headaches for party leaders.
Environmentalists want Congress to cap greenhouse-gas emissions, a proposal meeting resistance from companies such as General Motors Corp. because of its cost. They’re pushing for laws to force public utilities to buy 15 percent of their power from renewable energy sources, an idea opposed by Southern Co. and American Electric Power Co. And they want tougher energy- efficiency standards for cars, buildings and appliances.
“They have high expectations and non-negotiable demands,” James Lucier, an energy analyst at Capital Alpha Partners LLC in Washington, said of the groups, which include the Sierra Club, Friends of the Earth and the League of Conservation Voters.
The tension will soon become apparent. More than 2,000 protesters are planning a March 2 sit-in at a coal-fired plant that produces power for the U.S. Capitol, as part of a drive to get support for climate-change legislation.
While organizations such as the Sierra Club and Friends of the Earth are leading the charge, some new, more left-leaning partners are joining the fray.
The antiwar group Code Pink is training some of its ire on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a California Democrat, and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Nevada Democrat.
“They keep saying, ‘We want more of a majority,’ so they’ve got a bigger majority now,” said Medea Benjamin, a co- founder of Code Pink. “We expect more concrete results.”
Passage by 2009
Reid and Pelosi say they want to move climate-change legislation through Congress this year. That goal may be more realistic now, with Barack Obama in the White House and Representative Henry Waxman heading the House Energy and Commerce Committee. Waxman, who backs stringent climate-change goals, replaced John Dingell of Michigan -- the auto industry’s closest ally in Congress -- as the panel’s chairman.
Pelosi last month praised Waxman’s plan for his committee to vote by Memorial Day, May 25.
“I share his sense of urgency,” she said in a statement.
That urgency is also felt by environmentalists. With Democrats holding 58 of 100 Senate seats and with a 77-seat advantage in the House of Representatives, they want to seize the moment. And they haven’t been placated by recent victories.
The Senate last month approved a $10 billion conservation plan setting aside more than 2 million acres of natural wilderness and protecting 1,000 miles of scenic rivers.
A portion of the spending in an $819 billion economic- stimulus measure approved by the House last week is geared toward renewable-energy projects, including $6.2 billion to weatherize low-income homes.
Obama Backs California
And Obama last week signed an executive order opening the way for California and other states to limit greenhouse-gas emissions from cars and trucks, standards opposed by GM and Ford Motor Co. as too expensive, especially given the depth of the recession.
Lobbyists at environmental groups say they can build on that momentum to get climate-change legislation through before an international summit in December in Copenhagen with hopes of reaching a global accord. Obama has pledged to cut greenhouse gases by 80 percent from 1990 levels in 2050.
“We’re very hopeful about the prospect of climate-change legislation in 2009,” said Michael Goo, legislative director for the Natural Resources Defense Council’s climate change center.
http://bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601109&sid=awfEVQGtBzJo&refer=home
It just gets better and better... This is what happens when the GOP runs a candidate who can't win in the general election.