Climate, Politics/Capitol Light©, is a service of The JBS Group and Civil Notion
                                                                              January 8, 2020        
                                                                    
Feeding off of a failed UN Summit late in 2019, the almost daily release of reports updating and confirming climate science studies, student strikes, a continent on fire, and the already prominent place of climate in the race for the Democratic presidential nomination, 2020 looms as a watershed political year for national climate policy.

To state the obvious, the re-election of Trump would be a devastating setback for the environ-mental well-being of the nation and the world. Almost as costly in terms of climate defense would be a divided Congress. Notwithstanding the rising number of Republicans in both the House and Senate who are now at least willing to admit there is a problem, Republicans and Democrats remain very far apart in terms of a willingness to do anything even close to what the scientists say is needed within the time they say it needs to be done.

Below is a thumbnail about the new million dollar ad campaign the American Petroleum Institute (API) is launching this year on behalf of oil and gas companies. The tack the Institute is taking is to pitch themselves as part of the solution, without altering their position on most policy matters. API, for example, remains opposed to a carbon tax, the regulation of methane and other greenhouse gases. The campaign is intended to support a heavy lobbying effort by the companies to keep fracking alive.

                     Climate, Politics/Capitol Light©, is a service of The JBS Group and Civil Notion

                                                                      October 16, 2019                                                           

                                                   But, it's a long, long while from May to December
                                                 But the days grow short when you reach September
                                                When the autumn weather turns the leaves to flame
                                                          One hasn't got time for the waiting game

The lyrics above were written by Maxwell Anderson—a liberal Pulitzer prize-winning playwright and journalist from the 1920s until his death in 1959. Although having nothing to do with politics, September Song’s chorus perfectly reflects what’s going on these days on Capitol Hill—right down to not having time for the waiting game. Wait, we must, while Congress deals with impeachment inquiries and the precipitous pull-out of US forces from Syria.

Trump has certainly gotten his wish of being the center of attention. Unfortunately for the nation, the other business of government is being put on hold.

Congress must still face the problem of keeping the government open past the November 21st ending of the current continuing resolution. The various appropriations bills waiting in the queue are going to be hard-pressed to get the attention they deserve. Somewhat unusual and unfortunate, the Senate’s energy and water and commerce-justice-science appropriations bills have bipartisan support. Unusual because anything bipartisan these days is the exception, unfortunate because all the work that went into them appears wasted—at least for the moment.

Also hanging around the halls of Congress waiting for attention are critical issues like tax extender legislation, which would involve electric vehicles, wind, solar, and possibly biomass and efficiency technologies. However, the extenders bill promises to be somewhat problematic because the chair of the finance committee, Chuck Grassley (R-IA) was gearing up to fight any Democratic proposals that involved reneging on agreements made in 2017 that were one and done, e.g., wind credit (see below).