Jonathan Chait

Do EPA’s Carbon Emissions Rules Point to a New Climate Treaty? Nope.

The Future Global Climate Regime Will Not Rely on an International Accord

The irrepressible Jonathan Chait continues to do what he does best: shredding the GOP’s neanderthal nihilism on climate (or as Andrew Sullivan notes, the Republican Party has become “a reckless, know-nothing, post-modern fantasy machine.”). But Chait makes one big leap of logic that should actually be scotched. Chait points out that contrary to conservative predictions that …

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Can We Convince 500 People That Climate Change Is Important?

You might have noticed that in this election year, climate change has vanished from the national agenda.  There are lots of reasons for that, but in his superb takedown of Ayn Rand-acolyte and pathological liar Paul Ryan, Jonathan Chait may have stumbled on a way out. Chait observes that Ryan’s budget plan does not reduce …

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Who Killed the Ozone Rule?

It seems that Bill Daley did: Obama’s surprise move to block an ozone regulation from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) followed immense pressure from industry trade associations, which made numerous personal appeals to White House Chief of Staff Bill Daley.  Daley met with the heads of several business groups more than two weeks before Obama …

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Pathway to Farm Subsidies

Paul Ryan is one of the great intellectual and political frauds of our time.  You don’t need to do much more than read through Paul Krugman’s and Jonathan Chait’s work eviscerating his budget proposal, which carries the Orwellian name of “Pathway to Prosperity.”  But Legal Planet readers should be aware of something else. If there …

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Why Are Conservatives So Hostile to Climate Policy?

Dan wants to know why conservatives would oppose market-based solutions to climate change that avoid greater government intervention down the road.  I asked last week why traditional conservatives, who make much of preserving traditions through different generations and respecting institutions through time, would also oppose such policies. The answer to both questions lie in their …

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