Posted on 12/05/2009 2:37:50 PM PST by rabscuttle385
Sen. Lindsey Graham may be under fire from conservatives back home in South Carolina. But the Republican got a personal assurance from President Obama yesterday that the White House is supporting his efforts to craft a sweeping Senate energy and global warming bill.
“The president told me personally he was very open, that nuclear power would be part of the mix, that clean coal would be part of the mix, that he’s for offshore drilling in a responsible way,” Graham said today in describing his Oval Office meeting with Obama. “But we have to have a price on carbon, an emissions standard that’s real, that’s good for the environment and good for business. And I was very pleased.”
Graham’s ties to the White House are pivotal for sponsors of an energy and climate bill as they search for more Republicans willing to work on a key feature of their domestic and international agenda. Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) yesterday said he has “definite Republican votes” for the bill, though he would not name names or give exact numbers.
So E&E News PM (subs. req’d) reported last night. Again, those who think there is not going to be a bipartisan climate bill in the spring are not paying attention.
And it is going to be an economy-wide bill as Sen. Lieberman (I-CT) explains later in the piece:
Graham described Obama’s message after a Capitol Hill briefing that included 10 other senators and members of the U.S. Climate Action Partnership, a business and environmental lobbying group. Republicans Susan Collins of Maine and Judd Gregg of New Hampshire briefly stopped for the meeting that entailed leading corporate CEOs urging lawmakers to pass a sweeping bill to give them certainty about future environmental regulations.
“This country is in desperate need of a comprehensive energy and climate strategy,” Marvin Odum, president of Shell Oil Co., told reporters after the meeting. “And if we get that done, we can do this in a way that can increase American jobs, will increase our energy security, will improve our balance of trade, and will protect our environment.”
Graham said whether Obama can win more Senate Republicans depends on industry. “I think the message needs to come more from business people,” he said. “We need to get the business community more on board for acting now and more vocal about the consequences of inaction.”
Kerry, Graham and Lieberman are meeting tomorrow to discuss whether to produce an outline of their proposal during the two-week U.N. climate negotiations that start Monday in Copenhagen. But the three senators do not plan to release a full piece of legislation until early next year once they have won over additional co-sponsors.
When they do release their proposal, Lieberman insisted it would not venture into some of the alternative ideas that have recently gained traction on Capitol Hill, including a carbon tax or sector-specific limits only on power plants. “Personally, I don’t think there’s any chance of a carbon tax being this legislation,” Lieberman said.
Staff to Republican Sens. Richard Lugar of Indiana and George Voinovich of Ohio are researching the idea of greenhouse gas limits only for power plants, perhaps combined with other energy and environmental measures such as efficiency standards for buildings and stronger corporate average fuel economy standards for transportation.
But Lieberman said he remains focused on an economywide approach that covers major energy, transportation and manufacturing companies. “We are not” looking at the sector-specific approach, Lieberman said. “And I hope we don’t get to that because the most sensible way to start this is economywide.”
Precisely.
That’s the problem: When did or has the GOP ever had the balls to boot anyone in their ranks?
Graham is an idiot.
Lindsey Graham, you’re not John Galt.
This story of strange bedfellows is more complicated that simple horse-trading.
It turns out that Graham thinks the planet is in peril due to global warming. As a Washington Post feature points out, Graham thinks it’s high time for the Republicans to stop pretending global warming is a hoax and admit that climate change is a real problem.
QUOTE from WaPo Link in article:
"Our goal is to create a vision that not only will help this planet — which I think is in peril — but will create millions of new jobs for Americans who need them, and help us become energy independent to make us safer," Graham told a crowded Capitol Hill news conference Wednesday.
Anyone who takes the lead on this bill, after what has been learned over the past week or two, must be suspect.
Typical RINO ho ...
http://www.opensecrets.org/politicians/summary.php?cid=N00009975&cycle=2010
Top 5 Contributors, 2005-2010, Campaign Cmte
Contributor Total Indivs PACs
Nelson, Mullins et al $79,491 $70,491 $9,000
Scana Corp $57,630 $51,130 $6,500
EnergySolutions LLC $35,800 $35,800 $0
Edens & Avant $31,900 $31,900 $0
Blue Cross/Blue Shield $31,450 $24,950 $6,500
(snip)
Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) is helping to negotiate a nuclear energy amendment that could help bring aboard swing votes who support the industry. Architects and backers of the nuclear effort include Sens. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.), John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), who are seeking more federal financial backing and other support.
(snip)
Nuclear Energy Institute spokesman John Keeley said the industry’s priorities include greater funding for loan guarantees. Congress has set aside $18.5 billion thus far for nuclear plant loan guarantees under a DOE financing program first authorized in the 2005 Energy Policy Act. But this would cover only a small number of new plants.
Four proposals remain in the running for DOE guarantees from this funding, according to several published reports. They are: UniStar Nuclear Energy/Constellation Energy Group’s proposed Calvert Cliffs plant in Maryland; NRG Energy Inc.’s South Texas Project; Southern Co.’s Vogtle plant in Georgia; and Scana Corp.’s Summer plant in South Carolina.
http://cbs11tv.com/national/Eric.Holder.attorney.2.919893.html
Jan 28, 2009
Senate Panel Approves Holder Nomination For AG
Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said he supports Holder’s view that the country needs to interrogate terrorism suspects based on American values.
“I am confident this new attorney general will have a balanced approach and I look forward to working with him. I know he’s made mistakes and so have I,” Graham said.
//
http://www.thestate.com/local/story/871483.html
Tuesday, Jul. 21, 2009
USC to get new business building
Funds will come from leasing current building to Department of Justice
An estimated 250 Justice Department employees working in different locations near Washington, D.C., will be relocated to Columbia over an unspecified period.
Graham said U.S. taxpayers will save $42 million by having Justice Department employees working in South Carolina, which has lower costs than Washington.
“It was almost too good to be true,” Graham said of the plan. “But it proved to be true.”
Graham, a Republican, praised U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder and Deputy Attorney General David Ogden, both of whom were appointed by President Obama, a Democrat.
“I can’t thank Eric Holder and David Ogden enough,” Graham said, adding they offered their support for a leasing plan that was initiated during the administration of George W. Bush.
The sponsors of the ads in South Carolina lead to Center for American Progress which is, of course, Soros and the other billionaire progressives.
I had been wondering in the last few days if the East Anglia CRU scandal had given this guy an opportunity to back away from his uninformed position. I see he was too stupid to take advantage of this opportunity.
Personally I doubt he can back away. I suspect that he’s heavily invested in the carbon trading scam.
The fact we had better understand is that the GOP has been infiltrated to some extent as the Democrats have. Conservatism and progressivism are movements. We need to take over the GOP in the same manner the left took over the democratic party.
This guy has been bribed. Otherwise, he would not be spitting in the eye of his constituency.
nice find; that greases things up a bit;
pressure needs to be put on him to admit the AGW fraud (which he says he believes in as of Nov 11th [see post #24]-—before the emails were leaked).
It doesn’t suprirse me that Miss Lindsey had a cozy meeting with Ubama in the Oval Office.
I bet they share certain... interests.
Ooh boy... time to change the carpets again in 2013.
Clearly this scumbag Graham didn’t get the memo.
Hey, Miss Lindsey! “Global warming” has been exposed as a FRAUD!
BINGO
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