Indiana governor warns cap-and-trade tax will be disastrous for US economy

Governor Mitch Daniels (R-IN), after stating support for President Barack Obama’s education and anti-fraud social program initiatives, declared the administration’s cap-and-trade tax a “classic example of unwise government.” Daniels delivered the Weekly Republican Address on Saturday, accepting the role of “loyal opposition.” For fiscal conservatives, that’s putting it mildly. Many of us believe we should have a “loyal”, non-violent rebellion making use of the courts and other civil avenues to return control of the government to the people in accordance with the US Constitution. 

Although Daniels set a diplomatic note with his opening comments, he explained the potential devastation high energy taxes will levy on a battered US economy. Explaining the administration’s energy policy is “a poster child for government that cannot work,” Daniels pointed out facts every American should know, and they’re not being reported by what TUSR calls “pomp media.” Daniels said, “The scheme to radically change the sources and the cost of American energy through a system known as ‘cap and trade’ may be well intentioned, but it will cost us dearly in jobs and income, and it stands no chance of achieving its objective of a cooler earth.

“The national energy tax imposed by Speaker Pelosi's climate change bill would double electric bills here in Indiana, working a severe hardship on low-income families, but that's only where the damage starts. In a state where we like to make things, like steel and autos and RVs, it would cost us countless jobs, many of them heading off-shore to China and India. Our farmers and livestock producers would see their costs skyrocket. And our coal miners would be looking for new work, while we leave affordable, homegrown energy idle in the ground.

“And all for what? Even if one believes the Administration's own computer models, which they claim can predict temperatures fifty years away, the CO2 reductions from their bill will not budge the world thermometer by a tenth of a degree.”

Daniels also voiced an opinion many of us hold. He said, “Please excuse us Midwesterners for feeling a bit like the targets of an imperialistic policy, devised in places like California, New York, and Massachusetts for their benefit, at our expense.”

Most conservatives agree alternative energy is a great idea, with solar and nuclear power providing excellent options. I’d add to Daniels’ assessment the administration is also falling for the European carbon model, creating an economic bubble based on the trading of paper, financed by the American people. Cap-and-trade will not only redistribute wealth within America, it will transfer American wealth to foreign entities.

Arrogance of Waxman and Pelosi
Energy committee chair Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) admitted to Rep. Joe Barton (R-Tex.) he’s clueless about what’s actually in the bill Waxman is pushing. Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) called Waxman a “virtuoso” when it comes to legislation, leading some conservatives to wonder about Pelosi’s mental acumen, since Waxman actually hired a federal speed reader to go through the bill Democrats love but few if any have read or comprehended. The blog ‘I Hate the Media’ noted, “Democrats have a nasty habit of passing bills they don’t read, like the Stimulus boondoggle.”

I have asked publicly whether taxpayers and/or consumers of all political persuasion have grounds for a class action lawsuit. It seems to me that endorsing legislation a congressman has neither read nor comprehended, especially legislation that will affect every American household significantly, should be grounds for redress as stipulated in the US Constitution. Voters did not elect a federal speed reader. Pelosi and Waxman’s home state of California is flat broke.

Daniels concluded with a statement that will resound with those blessed with common sense, but may not be understood by people like Waxman and Pelosi: “There is tremendous risk in being pushed into an unfair and ultimately counterproductive national energy tax that will cost us dollars today and jobs tomorrow. Let's take a breath, slow down, and work together on conservation, the infrastructure to bring on more wind and alternative energy, and the new technology that will let us use our abundant homegrown coal in ways we can all support.”

Is there a lawyer in the house?
Meanwhile, I suggest US taxpayers look for a good lawyer, someone who wants to take on the federal government on an issue that will benefit the country, as opposed to organizations like the ACLU and the Center for Constitutional Rights whose only aim in our opinion is to destroy the greatest country in the history of the world. I make no apologies for America’s exceptionalism.

Indiana governor warns cap-and-trade tax will be disastrous for US economy by Kay B. Day