Signs of bipartisanship on the climate-change bill

October 20th, 2009 at 04:00pm Bob Trojan

Could these changes move the Cap and Trade Senate bill along?

The part most likely to bring a few extra Republicans on board concerns nuclear power. The two call for streamlining regulations on new plant construction, and putting more money into research on handling waste. This sop to nuclear power is more likely than anything else to bring on board John McCain, the 2008 Republican presidential nominee and a strong nuclear supporter. Green Democrats are wary of nuclear, but the edge of their worry has been dulled by the even greater worry over climate change. Barbara Boxer, the Democratic head of the environment committee, has admitted that she may not be able to hold the line against nuclear power.

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The second main provision of the Kerry-Graham agreement is renewed offshore drilling for oil and gas. Many conservatives want to mitigate America’s energy-security problems by looking to domestic fossil fuels. This has nothing to do with reducing carbon emissions, but it might help a bill that does contain carbon caps to pass.

The third announcement from Senators Kerry and Graham is that “we should consider a border tax” on goods from countries with lax environmental standards.
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Entry Filed under: Management, Economy