Via Gallup:

Without 2009 data on the partisan breakdown we can’t say for sure, but as has been the case in other recent polls, much of the downward shift appears to be among Republicans:

The whole editorial is strong but I especially like the last few paragraphs:

Industrial emissions account for a third of this country’s greenhouses gases, and freezing the government’s ability to regulate them makes no sense. There is no guarantee that Congress will produce a broad bill. And even if it does, what is the harm in requiring power plants and other industrial facilities to make near-term improvements in efficiency, or switch to less-polluting fuels?

These senators seem to have bought the hype, spun by industry, that the E.P.A. will run amok. This is not the way we read the intentions of the E.P.A. administrator, Lisa Jackson, who has promised that whatever regulations she proposes will be gradual, cost-effective and affect only the largest facilities.

Nor is it the way we read Congress’s responsibility to the country. That is to address the very real danger of climate change, not deny the government the tools it needs — and legally has — to fight it.

The fact that the thinking behind Murkowski and Rockefeller’s efforts comes directly from polluting industries is an important point, and one that can’t be repeated enough as far as I’m concerned.

Here is the National Association of Manufacturers:

The EPA needs to slow down and let Congress handle this issue.

Here is Senator Rockefeller on the day he introduced the Stationary Sources Regulations Delay Act:

This legislation will issue a two year suspension on EPA regulation of greenhouse gases from stationary sources—giving Congress the time it needs to address an issue as complicated and expansive as our energy future. Congress, not the EPA, must be the ideal decision-maker on such a challenging issue.

The Times piece is worth reading in full.

This came today from the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy.

Here is the analysis:

Jobs_Analysis_0309

Wall Street Journal:

The Energy Department filed to withdraw an application for a nuclear-waste repository at Yucca Mountain, formally seeking Wednesday to reverse a Bush administration policy.

The Obama administration’s Energy Department has said that it hopes to develop a new plan for long-term disposal of nuclear waste. The Energy Department has established a blue-ribbon panel to make recommendation

Here is the filing:

Read the rest of this entry »

The Hill:

The main trade group for auto dealers is backing Sen. Lisa Murkowski’s (R-Alaska) plan to thwart upcoming EPA climate change rules and attacking White House claims that her measure would harm struggling automakers.

In a letter to Murkowski on Monday, the National Automobile Dealers Association supports her resolution – which may come to the floor this month – to prevent EPA from issuing rules that limit greenhouse gas emissions from power plants, cars, factories and other sources.

Here is the letter:

murkowski resolution letter nada

Via Grist:

E2 Wire:

The Department of Transportation is warning that a Senate bid to block planned EPA greenhouse gas regulations would have “profoundly adverse effects” on the economy, the environment, and car companies.

…

The letter looks at what would happen if Murkowski’s plan becomes law and DoT has to proceed alone with new mileage standards. One result is that California and several other states would press ahead with their own emissions rules, instead of deferring to the joint DoT-EPA standard as planned, DoT notes.

Here is the letter:

nelson letter

Friends of the Earth:

Friends of the Earth recently released two TV ads in South Carolina and Georgia opposing the Obama administration’s proposed bailout of the nuclear industry.

You can read the press release here and watch the ads below.

First, on Tuesday evening, CNN broke the news that Van Jones would be receiving an NAACP image award. They published a fantastic Op-Ed by NAACP’s President Benjamin Jealous, which I’ll quote from at length:

He is quite simply one of the few Americans in recent years to have generated powerful new ideas that are creating more jobs here.He wrote the national bestseller, “The Green Collar Economy,” which provided the definitive blueprint for retooling American industry to create pathways out of poverty and generate a national economic recovery. He was a driving force behind passage of the 2007 Green Jobs Act. In fact, Van’s ideas have helped lead to the creation of tens of thousands of jobs across the industrial Midwest and throughout the nation’s decaying urban and rural areas.

Van Jones also may be the most misunderstood man in America.

He resigned from the White House last year after some sought to discredit him for missteps, such as political statements made years ago. However, we can never afford to forget that a defining trait of our country is our collective capacity to practice forgiveness and celebrate redemption. This is a nation built on second chances.

The real Van Jones story is about how a young leader became the father of the green jobs movement. In response to a longstanding jobs crisis in Oakland, California, he helped initiate the Oakland Green Jobs Corps, one of the nation’s first job training programs targeting low-income people for work in the solar and green industries. This program has become a renowned model for numerous initiatives that are now up and running across America.

Today, Van’s vision for seizing the opportunity created by the global shift to solar power and other forms of renewable energy is becoming a reality. Policies he has promoted are bringing change to downsized economies across America. In Ebensburg, Pennsylvania, workers have gotten new jobs from a county wind turbine plant and from other wind energy projects generated by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

Then, on Wednesday morning, the Washington Post broke the news that Van will be returning to the Center for American Progress to lead the newly formed Green Opportunity Initiative. You can read a transcript of WaPo’s interview with Jones here.

When Van was chased out of the White House last fall it was a punch in the gut to all of us who know how much he is needed. Van truly is a national treasure, and we’re extremely fortunate to have him back on the public stage.

Much more on this from Cheryl Contee, Brad Johnson, Adam Siegel and David Roberts.

Wonk Room:

Environmental Protection Agency administrator Lisa Jackson today announced she expects the EPA to weaken its proposed standards for global warming pollution from stationary sources and delay implementation until 2011. Responding to a letter from eight Democratic senators with strong ties to coal, oil, and industrial polluters, Jackson previewed changes to the rule to regulate greenhouse gases which her agency proposed last September she expects to make in its final form. Under the Clean Air Act, the finalization of the greenhouse gas endangerment finding originally expected in March — now, according to Jackson’s letter, in April — will trigger permitting requirements for stationary sources.

Here is the letter administrator Jackson sent to the eight Democratic Senators:

ghg_rule_weakening_letter –