You Can’t Make A Bad Bill Better – Dump Climate Change Proposal
By: Doug Busselman, Executive Vice President
It is getting more and more frustrating in this discussion of how the U.S. House Of Representatives Agriculture Committee is working to “fix” the proposed legislation on Climate Change. The proposal is a piece of crap and shouldn’t be fixed – it should be dumped and let’s move on with something that might actually matter.
I fully understand that the legislative process is a place where compromise and statesmanship are supposed to occur. I also know (from lots of first-hand experience as a lobbyist) that you can’t make a silk purse from a sow’s ear. Bad legislation doesn’t get better very often and terrible legislation (like the proposed climate change -- “let’s destroy the American economy even more” bill) is not fixable.
If we’re supposed to think that the only thing wrong with the Climate Change legislation is that farmers and ranchers aren’t getting paid to contribute to carbon sequestration – then we really have problems. Buying off opponents to a rotten policy idea will only make the rotten policy idea more expensive.
I hope that those who are representing farmers and ranchers in this debate won’t roll over for no matter how big they think the check is going to be. Congressman Peterson, take advantage of the power you have on this and put the whole idea of this bad legislation in a very deep hole – then fill that hole in and post a guard to protect us all from somebody digging it up again.
It is getting more and more frustrating in this discussion of how the U.S. House Of Representatives Agriculture Committee is working to “fix” the proposed legislation on Climate Change. The proposal is a piece of crap and shouldn’t be fixed – it should be dumped and let’s move on with something that might actually matter.
I fully understand that the legislative process is a place where compromise and statesmanship are supposed to occur. I also know (from lots of first-hand experience as a lobbyist) that you can’t make a silk purse from a sow’s ear. Bad legislation doesn’t get better very often and terrible legislation (like the proposed climate change -- “let’s destroy the American economy even more” bill) is not fixable.
If we’re supposed to think that the only thing wrong with the Climate Change legislation is that farmers and ranchers aren’t getting paid to contribute to carbon sequestration – then we really have problems. Buying off opponents to a rotten policy idea will only make the rotten policy idea more expensive.
I hope that those who are representing farmers and ranchers in this debate won’t roll over for no matter how big they think the check is going to be. Congressman Peterson, take advantage of the power you have on this and put the whole idea of this bad legislation in a very deep hole – then fill that hole in and post a guard to protect us all from somebody digging it up again.
Posted by Doug Busselman at 6/11/2009 7:40 AM 
Categories: Climate Change
Tags: Global Warming Congress
Categories: Climate Change
Tags: Global Warming Congress
Comments