Mollohan Undecided — Again
By Mike MyerU.S. Rep. Alan Mollohan, D-W.Va., is back to hedging his bets. Let's hope he doesn't get asked to place one, as he could if the Senate approves the "cap and trade" bill.
If the Senate approves the measure, it probably will do so with enough amendments that the bill requires another vote in the House of Representatives. There, you will recall, the measure was sent to the Senate on June 26 by a vote of 219-212. It is expected to be taken up in the Senate sometime in September or October.
My guess is that the political pressure exerted by President Barack Obama, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other liberals in advance of the June 26 vote will seem like child's play if the measure requires another vote in the House. Were I a betting man I would place several hundred dollars on "aye" votes from some lawmakers who said no during the first vote.
Mollohan may be one of them.
Clues to his thinking are provided in a letter his office sent to a local man who had written Mollohan to complain about "cap and trade."
Mollohan stressed that he had voted against the bill because the final version "retained features that pose risks to West Virginia..." But he did so only after several days in which his staff said he had not made a commitment to vote for or against the measure.
In his letter to the local constituent, Mollohan emphasized that, "It is important to understand at the outset that 'just say no' is probably not a realistic final response to this issue." The "just say no" label has been used by several liberal proponents of "cap and trade" to criticize opponents.
Mollohan's letter included this key phrase: "I am cautiously optimistic that the Senate will further improve the legislation to a point that the bill will realistically accommodate the continued use of coal in our energy economy."
In other words, Mollohan is back in the "undecided" column.
That may cause some to speculate that, having been let off the hook by Pelosi on June 26, Mollohan now needs an excuse to just say yes if the bill comes up again in the House.
Again, let's hope it is killed in the Senate. Last week I noted that Sen. Robert Byrd, D-W.Va., showed the political courage to come out against the bill immediately. I speculated that Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va., and Sen. George Voinovich, R-Ohio, would oppose it and that Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, would favor "cap and trade." To judge by a story done by reporter Joselyn King, published Thursday, my predictions were on target.
But it is developing that Voinovich may be a key foe of "cap and trade."
As I did just days before the June 26 vote, Voinovich is questioning an Environmental Protection Agency report on the consequences of "cap and trade."
The agency released a report claiming that the bill, if enacted, would have "a relatively modest impact on U.S. consumers, assuming the bulk of revenues from the program are returned to households." EPA analysts say "cap and trade" would cost the average U.S. household $80-$111 more a year.
But the agency admits the numbers are an average for the years 2010-2050. That ignores the much higher initial impact. It also ignores geographic differences. People in California who have little dependence on coal, for example, will not suffer much. West Virginians and Ohioans will.
Voinovich is demanding that the EPA provide a "reliable and realistic analysis" of the bill, in part by correcting flaws in its original report.
The Ohio senator is putting bite behind his bark, by putting a hold on Senate confirmation of Robert Perciasepe, Obama's nominee to be the No. 2 official at the EPA.
Voinovich is a Republican who has announced he will not seek re-election. That makes him immune to many of the pressures Obama and company could exert on him. It'll be interesting to see what they do in attempts to get the Ohio tiger off their backs.
Myer can be reached via e-mail at: Myer@theintelligencer.net.
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BigMike
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07-20-09 4:12 PM
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WV26003: From Mr Webster: Editorial: a newspaper or magazine article that gives the opinions of the editors or publishers ; also : an expression of opinion that resembles such an article <a television editorial>
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oldsteelmaker
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07-20-09 12:34 AM
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Getting back to the topic at hand, any WV politician that votes for this pile of ordure should be pitched out on his kiester. Global climate change is a fraud. All of this is based on computer models, and programs reflect the biases of the writers. They WANT to find something; if they don't, the grant money goes away. I spent a lot of time in academic circles, and there are no more ethics there than in any other cutthroat business. Give an untenured prof enough money, he will get tenure for proving the moon is really made of green cheese, because he brought in the big grant.
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oldsteelmaker
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07-20-09 12:25 AM
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WV, I suppose seeing a little conservative bias leaking through must be disconcerting, since it's so unlike the usual news slant.. There, there, just tune in MSNBC and all those nasty vast right wing conspiracy thoughts will be wiped away by waves of comforting mind destruction.
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WVEXPAT
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07-19-09 8:13 PM
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wv26003, To have a life so bereft of meaning that one has to call a regional newspaper's column preference an "unethical act" is beyond pathetic and somewhat sad. I'm sure you miss your job at the NR, but give up the hate. You're actually capable of making intelligent points when your not in NR bash mode!
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RangerRon
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07-19-09 4:06 PM
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wv26003 07-19-09 1:20 PM Someone call Weston and let them know RangerRon is missing. ================================================ Hey stupid Weston was closed long ago. Don't you remember when thry let you go! I still want the reporets on Obama's war! Whats the matter you were not ashamed to cite the dead when Bush was President and as I remember you are the one that said the 58,000 killed in Viet Nam were incidental! Give me my report GUTLESS!
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RangerRon
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07-19-09 9:24 AM
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wv26003 07-18-09 2:26 AM Another unethical act committed by Mike Myer. this is nothing new for this pathetic newspaper ================================================== Why don't you give up your job at McDonalds and replace Mike Myer. Your ego, based upon the constant thrashing of others that don't agree with your opinions, is such that I am sure that McDonalds could find another qualified person to clean out the grease traps. Go for it big mouth. Just think you could write about how "dumb" those Blue Dog Democrats were for forcing the "card check bill" from existance. Seems everyone is not to anxious to have UNIONS jammed down their throats. The glitter is starting to fall off you Idol and we still don't have the birth certificate. Also fifth call for the latest numbers from the "WAR ZONE" since Obama took over.
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acmooregov
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07-19-09 6:53 AM
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steelercrazy, The solution to this is very simple, vote for all challengers every election. A wise old man told me this, "the first term they work for the people every term after they work for themselves!"
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steelercrazy
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07-19-09 5:08 AM
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The Obots are now limited about 90% of the time to one or two sentence potshots at anyone who dare oppose any legislation that President Obama favors. I would prefer if the other side would actually examine each bill and decide whether it is worthy of support (Cap and Trade certainly is not), but I guess that's too much to ask from automatons... Zach Space's campaign treasury received $4000 from Nancy Pelosi right after he voted for C&T. It's scruples like those that are sending our country over a proverbial cliff, and hopefully the Space Cadet back home to roost in about 18 months.
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oldsteelmaker
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07-18-09 8:45 PM
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As for this spineless excuse for a representative, let him know if he votes yes he will have the undying hatred of every miner who loses his job from this, and the Republicans will be taking out ads in every area hit by this stupid policy to show happy Chinese coal miners at work while they starve on welfare.
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oldsteelmaker
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07-18-09 8:42 PM
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Myer is a private citizen working for a private business, a newspaper. What in your tiny little mind is unethical about advocating a no vote on an issue he thinks is important. Oh, I see. It's unethical because he opposes your goals. If he was on the other side (like say MSNBC) you would be happy as a clam. Always wondered, how do you tell a happy clam from a unhappy one?
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