I was vehemently opposed to regional cap and trade legislation introduced this past session because it would put New Mexico at an economic disadvantage and drive one of the cornerstones of our economy, the oil and gas industry, to other states while accomplishing nothing to deal with the global warming obsession that has been so heartily embraced by the left.
Quite honestly, rushing through national cap and trade legislation during a time of economic crisis would be equally foolish. Heck, for that matter, rushing through any far-reaching legislation on the federal level during any kind of crisis sets a bad precedent. So, my hat is off to Senator Jeff Bingaman:
Bingaman, who has worked for years to pass climate change legislation, joined Republicans for last week’s vote because he did not want to short-circuit the deliberation needed to come up with a workable bill, spokeswoman Jude McCartin said.
The rules being considered would have allowed climate change legislation to be folded into the Senate’s consideration of the federal budget, which allows limited debate and requires 51 votes for passage.
There are those who believe the world is warming on and on the road to an impending doom (I’m not one of them), but at least cooler heads have prevailed in the Senate.