Blog

She SaidIt: CEO of Big Wind Comes Clean on Taxpayer Handouts, “Without them, theIndustry Couldn’t Operate.”Politico (12/8) reports, “A pot of sweetenersin the form of tax extenders for pet energy industries could help ease thebitter pill that Democrats may have to swallow if they agree to the tax dealPresident Barack Obama and Republicans carved out. The expiring tax incentivesdesigned to boost ethanol and other energy industries might be enough toattract Democratic votes to extend the...

Pyle: “Neitherjobs nor the nation’s energy security are important considerations for thispresident.” Thomas Pyle(12/7) writes on FoxNews.com , “Just prior to the mid-term elections,President Obama ended the drilling moratorium in the Gulf of Mexico, at longlast heeding an outcry that included members of his own party. However, thegesture was purely political, and as it turns out, deceptive. Behind thescenes, his regulators imposed new red tape so complex that a de facto“permitorium”...

Under Locke and Key:Lawmakers Ask Admin. to Release Internal Commerce Dept. Reports Showing TrueImpacts Expected from EPA’s Risible Boiler Rule. E&E News (12/7, subs. req’d) reports, “Lawmakers worried about the job impacts of finalair pollution standards for industrial boilers are still seeking informationabout the controversial proposal that was released in April, though U.S. EPAhas signaled that the final rule will be less aggressive. Based on discussionswith Commerce officials, businesses...

Do It for Babs: You ThoughtDems’ Last-Ditch, Lame-Duck, Public Lands-Lock-Away Bill Was Just a DesperateHail Mary? Maybe So, Says Boxer – But Can’t You Do It For Me? Politico (12/6) reports, “Democratic efforts to push through more than100 public lands and water bills in the lame duck session are reaching a feverpitch, with the recognition this is the last chance many of them have to becomelaw. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has tasked Democratic leaderson at least three...

“So Very Hideous an Idea”:One Last Push for Land-Grab Monstrosity in Resources Coined by Hastings the“Frankenstein” Omnibus – 1,400 Pages, Millions of Acres Locked Away. Greenwire (12/2, subs. req’d) reports, “Rep. Doc Hastings (R-Wash.) struck a gothic tonein sounding off against Senate Democrats' eleventh-hour effort to pass a bundleof stalled waterways, public lands and wildlife bills before this Congressends. Citing staff research and "reliable private accounts," Hastingssaid the...

Kish: New Obama OffshoreBan will “kill production, kill revenue, kill jobs and kill consumer hopes foraffordable fuel and a sane energy policy.”Washington Times (12/3) editorializes, “Virginia has becomethe latest victim of the Obama administration's war against the domesticdrilling industry. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar announced yesterday thatwaters off Virginia and in the eastern Gulf of Mexico will remain closed todrilling through 2017 despite the commonwealth's strong desire for oil...

Why the “E” needs to be Removed from E&C: UptonFirst Order of Business, Healthcare; Sterns, the deficit; Barton,Bipartisanship; Shimkus, Who Knows, He Didn’t Speak to Reporters.Politico (11/30) reports, “Upton,Barton and Reps. John Shimkus and Cliff Stearns all made their presentations tothe GOP Steering Committee Tuesday. The panel, loaded with loyalists toincoming Speaker John Boehner, is expected to make its decision by nextTuesday. After being asked about his pro-life position by a member...

Beach Scopes: Lisa JacksonKickin’ It in Cancun This Week, Laments that Carbon “Pollution” Isn’t “Easy toPhotograph,” and Is Thus “Less Easy to Get People Riled Up About.” EnergyGuardian (11/30, subs.req’d) reports, “Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa Jacksonsuggested in a speech Monday that congressional opposition and voter apathy tocapping greenhouse gas emissions was the outcome of her agency’s 40 yearsuccess in regulating pollution. “We’ve gotten to the point now where we...

If You Read Only OneArticle This Week, Make It This: Thousands of Folks Who Returned to School toLearn How to Do “Green Jobs” Find Themselves Without Work Because Of It.Washington Post (11/23) reports, “Anton has been out ofwork since 2008, when his job as a surveyor vanished with Florida's once-sizzlinghousing market. After a futile search, at age 56 he reluctantly returned toschool to learn the kind of job skills the Obama administration is wageringwill soon fuel an employment boom: solar...

Sierra Club Drops the FigLeaf on Coal: “We Don’t Want It Burned At All” – Too Bad the ChineseDon’t Speak Na’vi. NY Times (11/21) reports, “At ports in Canada, Australia, Indonesia,Colombia and South Africa, ships are lining up to load coal for furnaces inChina, which has evolved virtually overnight from a coal exporter to one of theworld’s leading purchasers. The United States now ships coal to China viaCanada, but coal companies are scouting for new loading ports in WashingtonState. New...