The House narrowly passed what has long been considered to be an impossible bill to push through during a recession. It was bi-partisan in its passage, as 8 Republicans voted for it, and 44 Democrats voted against it. However, this sweeping energy innovation and climate protection bill, faces a short life as it heads to the Senate later this year.
Republicans threw a fit on the floor of Congress today, and then called a news conference to grandstand their fit. [Link is to video of conference.] Almost no one listened. And for good reason. Rep. Mike Spence (R-In) gave the cookies away when he said we Republicans could have given the American public greater access to oil, but, didn't. He went on to rail against Democrats for having recessed without an energy bill.
There is a poetic justice when mercury laden clouds head toward masses of Republican voters in Nevada and Utah. Hopefully this threat to their children and their unborn and others will cause them to rethink their support for a party that will never choose the environment over making money. This AP story is especially poetic due to the fact that the cloud emanates from gold mining operations which were exempted from EPA mercury emission laws.
