Politics

Red Mitt, Blue Mitt, Old Mitt, New Mitt

Mitt was once the governor of a Blue state.  Now he’s appealing to voters in Red states. Perhaps it’s no surprise that New Mitt’s views are the opposite of Old Mitt’s views. A NY Times editorial this morning highlights Romney’s changes of position and just how far right he has moved on environment and energy …

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EJ Advocates Renew Efforts to Block Cap and Trade

There are weighty arguments against the EJ position. Even if EJ advocates remain unpersuaded, they should recognize that it is possible to disagree with their views in good faith.

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Who Took the “Think” Out of Think Tanks?

The American Enterprise Institute is an interesting organization, often shrilly ideological but also scholarly from time to time.  I was curious to find out what kind of research they were doing on climate change. I did find some interesting policy papers on their webpage on the topic of climate policy. But here’s the surprising part: …

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Environmental Protection and Conservative Values

Tom Friedman had an interesting column yeserday about conservatism and the environment.  As he points out, the current wave of anti-environmentalism is out of line with Republican traditions: “Teddy Roosevelt bequeathed us national parks, Richard Nixon the Clean Air Act and the Environmental Protection Agency, Ronald Reagan the Montreal Protocol to protect the ozone layer …

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Is Environmentalism Bad for Fighting Climate Change?

Sure, it sounds like a paradox.  The environmental movement has done a lot of good for the planet and for pollution.  But in the face of the greatest environmental threat of our time, the movement may be fundamentally ill-suited to tackle the climate crisis. For most of its history, environmentalism has essentially been about stopping …

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The filibuster and environmental law

The filibuster in the U.S. Senate has been (rightfully) in the news quite a bit over the past few years.  The use of the filibuster has dramatically increased in those years, to the point where there is currently a de facto 60-vote supermajority requirement to pass legislation in the Congress.  That has led to a …

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Why We Need Administrative Agencies like EPA

Bureaucrats aren’t very popular.  But consider the alternatives when it comes to dealing with environmental problems.  Basically, bureaucrats are part of the executive branch of government.  For instance, the head of EPA is appointed by the President and can be removed by the President at any time.  (A few agencies such as the SEC enjoy …

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The Climate Misinformation Nation

Scientists are more confident than ever that climate change is happening and is largely caused by human activities.  Yet, according to a recent poll, the American public is less likely to believe that climate change is caused by humans than they were even last year. When it comes to climate science, are we a misinformation …

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Rand Paul, Constitutional Pervert

..and he’s not the only one. You can be forgiven for not knowing the name of Arunava Majumdar: he is a distinguished energy engineer who currently runs the Department of Energy’s Advanced Research Projects Agency – Energy (ARPA – E), and who until a few days ago was President Obama’s nominee (since last November) to become DOE’s new Undersecretary.  …

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How To Mobilize Public Support for Environmental Protection

To be politically sustainable, environmental law needs grassroots support.  Joan Blades, one of the founders of Move-On, recently spoke at Berkeley’s Energy and Resources Group about her thoughts on political mobilization.  It’s well-worth a look. [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XTK3f-2POi8]  

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