Power plant bill clears House, Capito says uphill Senate fight ‘worth happening’
In a Washington Post op-ed yesterday, R Street Institute President Eli Lehrer wrote that while conservative criticism of the Clean Power Plan is warranted, trying to block the rule without offering an alternative will not be effective. The courts have ruled that EPA has the authority to regulate greenhouse gases using the Clean Air Act, he noted. “If Republicans actually want to stop the Obama administration’s damaging policies, they’re going to need more than blind faith in the eventual arrival of some landmark future decision or clean electoral sweep,” he wrote. Instead of passing messaging bills, Republicans should negotiate a rollback of the rule in exchange for a carbon tax that would return revenue in the form of tax reductions, Lehrer said. “Conservatives have a lot to gain and nothing to lose by offering their own credible solution to climate change,” he said. “Their current strategy is a loser that, at best, will just delay a liberal victory.
