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July 10, 2009

Cap and Tax: Government vs. America

Topics: Political News and commentaries

David Limbaugh writes that there is still time to stop the legislative monstrosity known as the Waxman-Markey cap-and-trade bill before the Senate approves it - but for that to happen, Americans must learn how bad it is:

Let's briefly review the basics: The bill is ostensibly designed to curb man-caused carbon emissions (presumably without outlawing breathing) to retard global warming.

Even if we accept, for purposes of argument, the assumptions of radical, hysterical leftist environmentalists that man-caused global warming will destroy the planet if evil, rich capitalists don't radically curtail their own contributions to the catastrophe, Waxman-Markey would not prevent this Armageddon.

Climate scientist Chip Knappenberger, of New Hope Environmental Services, calculates that the bill would only reduce Earth's temperature by 0.1 to 0.2 degree Celsius by 2100. The Heritage Foundation's Ben Lieberman says he's found no "decent refutation of the assertion that the temperature impact would be inconsequential."

Unfortunately, the bill's negative impact on the economy would not be inconsequential. Lieberman says the bill would cause estimated job losses averaging about 1.15 million from 2012-2030, and the cumulative projected loss in gross domestic product would be almost $10 trillion by 2035. The national debt from this bill alone, disregarding the multiple bailouts, stimulus packages and health care "reform," would increase by 2035 for a family of four by 26 percent, or $115,000.

Heritage is not alone in making these claims. The far more liberal Brookings Institution estimates the bill would cost 1.8 percent of GDP in 2035 and 2.5 percent by 2050. Heritage's "Foundry" blog concludes, "Economists from liberal think tanks, conservative think tanks, and industry associations agree that Waxman-Markey will reduce income by hundreds of billions of dollars per year."

These facts are enough to make you question why people aren't threatening a sit-in in the Senate until this recklessness stops. But there are other things about the bill you should know -- just in case you have an unusually high outrage tolerance:

--As noted, the bill contains a hidden provision establishing unemployment benefits for up to three full years for workers displaced as a result of this "job creations" bill, as well as health insurance premium subsidies and $1,500 each for job search and relocation expenses -- all at taxpayers' expense.

--The American Issues Project has exposed Section 204 of the bill, called the "Building Energy Performance Labeling Program," which gives the federal government unprecedented authority over your home. AIP says the section mandates that new homes be 30 percent more energy-efficient than the current building code on the very day the law is signed. The requirement increases to 50 percent by 2014 and continues to increase until 2030.

Continue reading: Cap and Tax: Government vs. America

"Cap and Tax: Government vs. America," indeed. In fact, Waxman-Markey is such an economy killer that the NY Post calls it a "Trojan Hearse." And according to the Post, it would be the largest tax increase in world history, as well as transfer vast wealth from consumers to big-business special interests:

And it would put Washington in charge of people's lives in a way not seen since the Second World War -- which was the last time Americans needed ration coupons to buy gasoline, food and other commodities.

Just as both the Post and Limbaugh suggest, if Waxman-Markey is to be defeated, the American people are going to have to "shout loud enough that their representatives can hear them over the corporate CEOs guffawing about the stupendous payoff being paid them by the Democrats in Congress."

Related:
Barack Obama and the Strategy of Manufactured Crisis (A must read)
Cap-and-tax would fund ACORN

Posted by Richard at July 10, 2009 12:04 AM

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