The Climate of Climate Change Policy
Last fall people across North Carolina and the nation spoke loud and clear: they wanted change. Not even a year later it seems that the national media and our elected officials are losing sight of the electorate’s decision to take our country in a new direction. They seem to be falling for big polluters’ high dollar distraction show that’s now touring the nation to stop comprehensive clean energy legislation in Congress.
Recently, the New York Times, Washington Post, and MSNBC ran stories highlighting the extreme tactics the energy industries are using to ensure that our country continues with “business as usual” energy and oil usage. The dirty tactics in this multi-million dollar campaign include stealing letterhead from senior citizen centers to forge letters sent to members of Congress, hiring actors to play average Americans for a video against energy reform, and providing detailed instructions on how to interrupt civil discussions by disrupting public town hall events.
Average Americans and even renewable energy businesses can never compete with the tens of millions of dollars big polluters are spending to convince you, me, and the media that we can't change. They say we can't afford to move toward the safe, clean fuels of the 21st century. They say we can't afford to create new jobs that help us to restore prosperity to our country. The truth is, we can and last fall’s election demonstrated that Americans want to move forward with a new clean energy economy.
In a time of serious economic hardship, the Washington Post reports “In the first six months of 2009, the Center for Responsive Politics found [oil and natural gas companies] spent $82.1 million lobbying Washington on various issues, including energy policy.” The irony is that the big polluters spent tens of millions of dollars—in less than a year—to argue that national energy reform will cost consumers and their companies too much. They chose to invest in lies and propaganda instead of investing in putting people back to work.
These days I hear people asking: will national energy legislation help save money, or will we end up paying more for energy? The answer is, it depends on who writes the policy. If we sit back and let the well-financed energy industries write the bill, we can expect to see massive giveaways to polluters, consumers paying more for energy, and mediocre goals that let polluters off the hook and don’t halt climate change. Wise climate policy can and should offset any increases in cost with rebates for low and middle-income households, targeted energy efficiency investments in low and middle-income communities, and new job opportunities.
Saving the earth and growing North Carolina’s economy doesn’t have to be a contradiction. In fact, we have great potential in this state to benefit from national energy legislation. Right now only 4% of North Carolina's current electric power generation comes from renewable energy sources. However, according to a report from the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy our potential for generating renewable energy within the short-term is 29% and within a decade it’s 42%. We need to tap this potential for renewable energy and create homegrown clean energy jobs in North Carolina.
We can't afford to wait to restore American leadership in the global marketplace. Europe, China and Australia—just to name a few—are already way ahead of the U.S. in developing the clean energy technologies of the future. But it’s not too late. We can lead the first technological revolution of the 21st century the way we led the major technological revolutions of the 20th century—but only if Congress acts on energy legislation this year.
As our elected officials continue to work to develop legislation, I pray that they do not allow themselves to be swayed by the multi-million dollar polluter propaganda show. Instead, I hope they will remember the mandate that they received from voters to pass a clean energy plan for America. One where energy legislation puts people back to work with green jobs, reduces global warming pollution, and invests in clean, safe energy that never runs out.
Join me in calling on Senator Hagan to support strong action this year on energy reform that addresses climate change and puts people back to work. Take action here now by clicking here.
