Waxman Aims to Kill Off the Upper Midwest

Just after the elections, Conservatives raised the alarming possibility that Henry Waxman (D-Fruits&Nuts) would replace John Dingell (D-UAW) as chair of the Energy & Commerce committee.

That transpired--and the Upper Midwest is going to pay dearly for it.

House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Henry Waxman said he won’t compromise on his proposed 20 percent reduction in greenhouse gases over the next decade in the face of criticism from lawmakers who say the economy could suffer.

“I want to keep those caps in place,” Waxman said in an interview on Bloomberg Television’s “Political Capital with Al Hunt” airing this weekend. “It’s what the scientists are telling us we must do” to avoid a global catastrophe, he said

And Dick Nixon's legacy of Big Gummint (he was a Republican, remember??) has played its part:

...four days of subcommittee hearings will follow the Environmental Protection Agency’s ruling today that greenhouse gases pose a danger to the public, a finding that opens the way for new U.S. regulation of cars, power plants and factories

It appears that Dingell will play along with Waxman's plan--despite the fact that he represents a part of Michigan.

Waxman said Representatives John Dingell, a Michigan Democrat who once chaired the committee, and Rick Boucher, a Democrat from Virginia’s coal country, will support his 20 percent reduction even though they have previously called for a reduction of just 6 percent.

Why would Dingell cave?

Easy. Follow the rent-seeking, graft and corruption money:

Dingell and Boucher may be willing to accept the higher reductions in part because of Waxman’s proposal for allocating the permit revenue

What that means is this: after Big Green increases the cost of electricity and heat by $1.8 TRILLION dollars or so, (about $3,200.00/year for the average Wisconsin resident), some money will be "given" to certain entities.

“By and large” it should be spent on green technologies, [Waxman] said, and part of it could be used to “help consumers with higher energy costs” and hard-hit industries, “especially coal.”

Set your thermostat for 55 degrees in winter and 90 in summer; ditch your refrigerators and freezers, and fuggedabout hot-water showers.

And if you work for a manufacturer, or a printing company, start looking for a new job. Now.