In its pitch for a federal clean energy standard (CES), The Washington Post’s editorial board asks, “Will America do anything significant to slow climate change?” Assuming America actually needs to do something to slow climate change, even if the Post’s editorial board got its wish for a CES, America still wouldn’t be doing anything to slow climate change. Senator Jeff Bingaman’s (D–NM) Clean Energy Standard Act of 2012 would require at least 24 percent of U.S. electricity generation to come from politically defined “clean energy” sources by 2015. The mandate … More
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A sudden spate of tornadoes in Texas on Tuesday destroyed an estimated 650 homes. Seventeen people were injured, though thankfully no fatalities have been reported. (If you’re feeling charitable, the American Red Cross is accepting donations to assist the in the relief effort.) As severe weather events often do, the series of tornadoes set off a round of speculation by pundits eager to attribute them to global warming – or climate change, as one CNN weatherman made sure to label it: ALEXANDRA STEELE: The same area’s in place for severe weather … More
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President Obama famously declared in this year’s State of the Union: “I’ve approved fewer regulations in the first three years of my presidency than my Republican predecessor did in his.” Heritage’s James Gattuso and Diane Katz have run the numbers. And Obama shouldn’t be bragging. Obama’s comparison encompassed all regulations, including federal rules for such things as Medicare rates, migratory birds and fireworks safety. And on that point, he was telling the truth. This week’s chart tests Obama’s claim by looking at the number of major regulations imposed by each administration. Major … More
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In a new book out this week, Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK) traces the history of global warming hysteria and concludes it’s a downright hoax. He also reveals how climate-change champions are benefiting financially by promoting the idea. Inhofe’s book, “The Greatest Hoax: How the Global Warming Conspiracy Threatens Your Future,” is sure to inspire heated debate on the controversial subject of climate change. As the ranking member on the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, Inhofe has been at the center of that debate for the past 10 years. He’ll … More
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Former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman clarified his position on how policymakers should deal with climate change. In a speech Tuesday at The Heritage Foundation he said, “There’s not enough information right now to be able to formulate policies.” Even if there were a consensus that there is global warming, and it’s man-made, then the United States might still choose not to take unilateral action, he added. Premature political action, he noted, could jeopardize economic recovery for a potentially ineffectual attempt to tackle the issue. “The scientific community owes us more,” … More
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Another year, another hopeless climate talk. This time, the annual U.N. climate change summit is taking place in Durban, South Africa. It looks painfully like another misguided attempt to convince developed countries to shoulder global emissions targets while redistributing wealth to developing countries. This approach, again, is likely to fail—despite China’s recent announcement that it would consider accepting a legally binding agreement. For the past 17 years, one U.N. climate talk after another has failed over the same basic issue. While top-down international policymaking may sound appealing to those whose … More
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Another round of leaked e-mails from the University of East Anglia’s (UEA) Climatic Research Unit have surfaced, once again illustrating why governments should not be making serious policy decisions based on mainstream climate science. Several of the following excerpts not only call into question conventional “climate change” wisdom but also suggest the selective use of information with an agenda in mind: Observations do not show rising temperatures throughout the tropical troposphere unless you accept one single study and approach and discount a wealth of others. This is just downright dangerous. … More
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