Republicans who once favored clean energy are now opposing President Obama’s “clean energy standard.” Many Republicans appear intent on burying the President’s plan by equating it with the failed cap-and-trade bills which conservatives falsely claimed was costly and a job-killer.
The Republican point man on the war against renewable energy is House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton. In a Wall Street Journal column, Upton said Obama’s plans “smell like cap-and-trade all over again.”
Lisa Murkowski is the top Republican on the Energy and Natural Resources Committee, she reiterated the Republican refrain that the low-carbon energy plan would raise consumer costs.
The White House claims the clean energy standard will help bring “tens of billions of dollars each year in new investment,” and it will “give utilities the flexibility to generate clean energy wherever makes the most sense.” The clean energy standard not only creates jobs it positions the US as a leader in expanding green energy economy.
To gain Republican support for “clean energy” the President has adopted a very liberal standard that includes nuclear, natural gas and even clean coal. Although Republicans had previously shown support for these power sources, they have shown very little interest in working with the President.
Obama warned resistant Republican lawmakers that inaction threatens jobs, increases American dependence on foreign oil and puts the US at a competitive disadvantage.
Despite the President’s sincere bipartisan efforts, Republicans are virtually unanimous in their bid to bury the President’s plan.
© 2011, Richard Matthews. All rights reserved.
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