Washington Governor Jay Inslee Is Rethinking The Carbon Tax Or Something

Jay Inslee may not be a household name, but, as a governor running for the Democratic presidential nominee, and someone who hasn’t shown himself to be an overt raving leftist wackadoodle, he’s someone to watch as a potential front runner. He may not be the Leftist darling that folks like Kamala Harris, Corey Booker, Elizabeth Warren, and a few others, but he really does have a good shot unless the raving wackjob Dem base decides to nominate raving leftist wackjob. And Inslee is also a massive Warmist.

Now, this story is long. Very long. And worth the full read. But, I’m not going to fisk the whole thing, which is supposedly about Inslee thinking different about a carbon tax after losing several times in what is essentially an uber-Warmist state

Defeated twice, a top climate change crusader has a wake-up call some Democrats won’t want to hear

Gov. Jay Inslee of Washington staked the future of his environmental policy on something activists had advocated for decades: a first-of-its-kind statewide fee on carbon pollution.

But in one of the greenest states in the country, in a historic midterm year for Democrats and amid a spate of new reports warning of climate catastrophe, his efforts to put a price on carbon failed badly.

Undaunted, Inslee is looking to carry the lessons learned from a long career of incremental wins and heartbreaking losses on climate policy to the national stage as a possible presidential contender.

“I learned one of the key talents is persistence,” he told NBC News in an interview. “Climate change is not going away, and neither are we.” (snip)

His potential entry into the wide-open 2020 Democratic primary contest with a climate-focused campaign comes amid an intense debate over how to marry environmental sustainability with political sustainability, a question he’s grappled with like few others. He believes the fate of the world depends on getting the answer right.

“That’s what’s at stake here,” Inslee said. “A fundamental continuation of life and civilization as we’ve become accustomed to.”

Dooooooom! He’s not really re-thinking implementing a carbon tax, he’s just rethinking how to push it. Apparently, doom is one way forward. The other is dinking and dunking taxes, building them slowly (he should remember how that has ended up working out in France). And here’s his real message for Democrats

Heading into the presidential campaign, there’s a burst of grassroots energy around the Green New Deal, but it faces competition from similarly ambitious Democratic proposals on health care, education, taxes and more.

Inslee hasn’t ignored those items (he just proposed a new public health care option in his state), but he has a message Democratic voters might not hear from the party’s presidential candidates: If you’re going to tackle climate change, the rest may have to wait.

“When you want college education for your kids, when you want better health care, when you want net neutrality, when you want all of those things, but your house is on fire and it’s burning down, you’ve got to put the fire out first and get your family out of the house,” he said.

“That’s the type of prioritization we have to make if we are going to succeed in rescuing our country from this existential threat,” he added.

Got that? In his world, nothing else matters if we aren’t saved from (checks data) a whopping 1.5F increase in global temperatures since 1850. How will this message play among Democrats? How about voters overall? Because no matter how hard the Cult of Climastrology pushes, ‘climate change’ is always low hanging fruit.

We’ll see if this catches on with the Dem base once the primaries start. Most likely, though, it will be a big failure with the voters overall, as they realize just how much this push will damage their finances and cost of living and such. It would be a great referendum on the Cult, which is why I’m pushing for Inslee to win the Dem primary. Perhaps we can put a big stake in the heart of the Cult, at least here in the U.S.

Read: Washington Governor Jay Inslee Is Rethinking The Carbon Tax Or Something »

If All You See…

…is a horrible carbon pollution infused soda that also causes obesity but mentioning that is fat-shaming and totally not body positive, you might just be a Warmist

The blog of the day is A View From The Beach, with a post on some Russiagate while you wait out the snow.

It’s Asians week!

Read: If All You See… »

Sorta Blogless Sunday Pinup

Happy Sunday! A fun day in the awesome nation of America. A bit of winter weather happening, the geese are honk honk honking away, and the Cowboys lost. Good stuff. This pinup is by Sergio Diaz, with a wee bit of help.

What is happening in Ye Olde Blogosphere? The Fine 15

  1. Powerline notes AOC whining about criticism
  2. Climate Change Dispatch covers thousands facing rising energy costs due to an eco-energy scam
  3. Climatism highlights one picture that should put the green scam into context
  4. 90Ninety Miles From Tyranny has offbeat stories you might have missed
  5. Anti-Idiotarian Rottweiler notes an insane Marxist on the Seattle city council
  6. Blazing Cat Fur highlights the waste crisis of dead solar panels
  7. Bunkerville discusses the legality of bringing child brides into the U.S.
  8. Chicks On The Right covers the “racist” toy found in a chocolate egg
  9. Cold Fury features the newest Coexist
  10. Creeping Sharia covers Ohio criminalizing female genital mutilation
  11. DC Clothesline offers data on whether AR-15’s are a public safety threat
  12. Diogenes’ Middle Finger covers the Dems wanting to seize control of state elections
  13. Jihad Watch notes a female rights activist claiming a laugh-riot “Islam improves status of women”
  14. Just One Minute notes the haterade at the FBI
  15. And last, but not least, Legal Insurrection discusses the battle between CNN and a local San Diego station

As always, the full set of pinups can be seen in the Patriotic Pinup category, or over at my Gallery page. While we are on pinups, since it is that time of year, have you gotten your “Pinups for Vets” calendar yet? And don’t forget to check out what I declare to be our War on Women Rule 5 and linky luv posts and things that interest me

Don’t forget to check out all the other great material all the linked blogs have!

Anyone else have a link or hotty-fest going on? Let me know so I can add you to the list.

Read: Sorta Blogless Sunday Pinup »

Open Borders Democrats Prefer Open Borders Instead Of Trading Border Security For A DACA Deal

The Hill’s Rafael Bernard reports on a little measure that is going nowhere, but, it is very interesting to see why from the Democrat point of view

Dreamers-for-wall trade going nowhere in House

A deal to reopen the government by trading border wall funding for immigration benefits for so-called Dreamers doesn’t stand a chance in the House, according to legislators on both sides of the aisle.

House Democrats say they don’t trust President Trump to keep his end of any bargain, and are wary of negotiating a deal that could benefit those in the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program while throwing other undocumented immigrants under the bus.

Got that? They’ve been yammering about these Dreamers for a long time, caterwauling about helping them, yet, are unwilling to help these kids who were “brought to the U.S. through no fault of their own so they shouldn’t be punished” because it would mean implementing measures that would make it a lot more difficult for foreign nationals from crossing the border illegally. They would prefer open borders over helping the so-called Dreamers.

And, really, they wouldn’t even be giving Trump a wall

That bill would have granted a path to citizenship to Dreamers both within and outside DACA in exchange for technological and manpower investments in border security, but no wall construction.

The Hurd-Aguilar bill, which lacked the support of GOP leadership, never made it to the floor.

Aguilar ruled out even preliminary cross-aisle negotiations while the partial government shutdown is in effect.

“If Republicans want to have conversations, we’re always happy to, and you know that I will continue to have conversations with Republicans about a long-term solution to this. But we can’t negotiate while the government is shut down, period,” he said.

From the point of view of Trump and most in the GOP this would have been a non-starter as there is no money for the wall. Further, this would have given upwards of 800,000 illegal alien kids eligible for DACA a pathway to citizenship, would have allowed their parents who committed the sin of bringing them illegal to stay, and allowed them to bring in many more relatives. What Democrats would get would outweigh what the GOP would get by a factor of, what, 100-1?

But the fact that this bill, which would give Democrats tons more benefits than the GOP would get, that would provide almost meaningless border security methods, is going nowhere with Democrats shows that they really do not want to Do Something about Dreamers, that they just want to have an issue to thunder about on the floors of the House and Senate, as well as in front of cameras.

Further, they are sticking with the plan of refusing to talk about securing our southern border (and, yes, we do need to do something about the 45% of illegals who overstayed their visas), which is a duty given them in the Constitution, until such time as the GOP and President Trump give them everything they want. And we know that Democrats will refuse to discuss it once government is re-opened.

If Democrats do not want a wall, here’s an easy solution: the minute someone is caught crossing the border illegally they are put back on the other side. Period. No hearings, no long processes, we caught you, bye. Then a wall wouldn’t be that necessary.

Read: Open Borders Democrats Prefer Open Borders Instead Of Trading Border Security For A DACA Deal »

Popularity Of Green New Deal Totally Enthusing Warmists That They Are No Longer Irrelevant

They are super excited!

The Green New Deal’s Sudden Popularity Is A Reason For Climate Change Optimism

There were several moments in 2018 when it was difficult to remain hopeful for any sort of meaningful action on climate change. The Trump administration has worked tirelessly to impede a transition to a green economy with actions ranging from opening the long-protected Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to drilling, to implementing tariffs on imported solar panels, to the president’s own denial that humans are causing unprecedented warming ― despite his own government’s comprehensive report stating the opposite.

Given the severity of the challenge we now face, it would be easy to see 2018 as an irreversible step backward, the sealing of our already grim fate. Yet despite all this, 2018’s midterm elections showed that politicians do have a path forward with American voters when it comes to comprehensive action on climate. The message, as it turns out, isn’t any sort of brilliant political calculus either. It’s a return to kitchen-table issues: jobs and economic opportunity. (snip)

The Green New Deal is a unifying political message that gets back to the basics of creating an economy that works for all people and protects the planet as a result. In fact, a recent poll by the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication and George Mason University showed that a staggering 93 percent of Democrats and 64 percent of Republicans agree with the basic components of the Green New Deal (our own poll data from earlier this year echoed those findings, showing the American public’s overwhelming preference for renewables over fossil fuels). The only other thing that gets such a high level of bipartisan agreement is that Democrats and Republicans can’t agree on basic facts.

It’s now important that we take advantage of this consensus, and fast. The 2018 midterm election should be a clear lesson for the still-forming roster of 2020 presidential contenders: What Americans crave the most is a government that works for the people, not just some of the people. Americans, first and foremost, want their basic needs met and candidates who are willing to listen to their concerns and then work to address them in Washington.

Well, good luck with that. First, Democrats have long given up on economic opportunity, and not just via the free market, for the middle and lower income classes. They are happy to patronize these people when elections come around, but, really, most of their policies do not help. The rest simply make the middle and lower classes reliant on government.

Second, the minute people, even most of the casual believers in anthropogenic climate change, learn how much this will cost them out of their own pockets, how much their taxes and fees will go up, how much energy, clothing, food, housing, etc, will rise, and how much power government will not have over their lives, the minute that happens most will abandon this idiocy.

We should probably thank AOC and the other Democrats for pushing this, because it may well put a nail in the man-caused climate change scam, exposing it as the fascist big government push it really is.

Read: Popularity Of Green New Deal Totally Enthusing Warmists That They Are No Longer Irrelevant »

If All You See…

…are trees that a turning colors earlier than they used to because the ecology should never change, you might just be a Warmist

The blog of the day is neo-neocon, with a post on how we are all dead from the end of Net Neutrality.

Read: If All You See… »

Not A Cult: Warmists Katherine Hayhoe Called A “Climate Prophet”

Remember, though, this is totally serious science, you guys

Climate Change Prophet
On the podcast: A scientist who is also an evangelical Christian wants conservatives to understand the dangers of climate change.

Climate change is one of the most politically divisive issues in the United States today: Most liberals embrace the scientific view that it’s a largely man-made phenomenon threatening our very existence, whereas many conservatives see it as fake news.

Standing at the intersection between these two groups is Katharine Hayhoe, an evangelical Christian who is also an atmospheric scientist. Hayhoe, who runs the Climate Science Center at Texas Tech University, has devoted herself to persuading skeptics that climate change is real—including people in her own community.

Hayhoe is featured in the Winter 2019 edition of Foreign Policy magazine as one of 100 Global Thinkers. She is also the guest on our podcast this week.

Let’s be clear on one thing: climate change is real. But, there is no actual scientific proof using the scientific method nor real facts and data that Mankind is mostly/solely responsible for the current warm period. And the way in which the Believers present it makes it look like a cult.

Read: Not A Cult: Warmists Katherine Hayhoe Called A “Climate Prophet” »

Individual Responses Are Immaterial In Fight Against ‘Climate Change’ Or Something

Quite often, when you get in a discussion with a Warmist, they’ll blow off the question asking them what they are doing in their own lives, saying that we all need to do something, by which they mean government has to force everyone to comply. Things like this

Focusing on how individuals can stop climate change is very convenient for corporations
Sure, it’s morally good to reduce your footprint–but don’t let that deflect attention from who is really to blame.

What can be done to limit global warming to 1.5°C? A quick internet search offers a deluge of advice on how individuals can change their behavior. Take public transport instead of the car or, for longer journeys, the train rather than fly. Eat less meat and more vegetables, pulses and grains, and don’t forget to turn off the light when leaving a room or the water when shampooing. The implication here is that the impetus for addressing climate change is on individual consumers.

But can and should it really be the responsibility of individuals to limit global warming? On the face of it, we all contribute to global warming through the cumulative impact of our actions.

By changing consumption patterns on a large scale we might be able to influence companies to change their production patterns to more sustainable methods. Some experts have argued that everyone (or at least those who can afford it) has a responsibility to limit global warming, even if each individual action is insufficient in itself to make a difference.

I like the part about “those who can afford it.”

Yet there are at least two reasons why making it the duty of individuals to limit global warming is wrong.

INDIVIDUALS ARE STATISTICALLY BLAMELESS

Climate change is a planetary-scale threat and, as such, requires planetary-scale reforms that can only be implemented by the world’s governments. Individuals can at most be responsible for their own behavior, but governments have the power to implement legislation that compels industries and individuals to act sustainably.

Although the power of consumers is strong, it pales in comparison to that of international corporations, and only governments have the power to keep these interests in check.

(Lots more to this you should read)

GOVERNMENTS AND INDUSTRIES SHOULD LEAD

Rather than rely on appeals to individual virtue, what can be done to hold governments and industries accountable?

Governments have the power to enact legislation that could regulate industries to remain within sustainable emission limits and adhere to environmental protection standards. Companies should be compelled to purchase emissions rights–the profits from which can be used to aid climate-vulnerable communities.

(and lots more of this you need to read)

So, it is the companies which provide products and services people want and use who are at blame, not the people want those products and services. And only Government can stop this by force of legislation.

Funny how it always comes down to government force.

Read: Individual Responses Are Immaterial In Fight Against ‘Climate Change’ Or Something »

Open Borders Dems Consider Suing Trump If He Declares National Emergency On Border

We keep being told that Democrats are not in favor of open borders, but they keep offering policies like using drones and cameras so we can watch illegals cross the border rather than a barrier to stop them, and threatening stuff like this

Dems eye lawsuit if Trump declares border emergency

Democrats are eyeing a lawsuit challenging President Trump if he attempts to circumvent Congress and declare a national emergency to build a border wall.

The legal strategy remains in the theoretical stages, since Trump has so far declined to take such a step — and it’s unclear if he ever will.

But on day 21 of the partial government shutdown — a closure prompted by an impasse over border wall funding — Democrats are prepping for the possibility that Trump will try to sidestep Congress and divert other funds to new wall construction by proclaiming the situation a formal emergency.

Increasingly, Democratic critics of that maneuver view a lawsuit as their best recourse.

“Let’s fight it out in court,” said Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), a former law professor who represents a suburban district around Washington.

“Let’s get the president’s obsession out of the legislative context, let’s put it into the courts, let’s reopen the government, and we’ll see if he has those powers or not,” Raskin added.

Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.), who also represents a Washington suburb that’s been disproportionately affected by the shutdown, said it’s “a safe bet” that any emergency proclamation from the White House on the wall would go to the courts.

“I think it is a face-saving — a rather desperate face-saving — measure by the president that has very little intellectual underpinning to justify it,” Connolly said.

Well, this might be interesting from a legal standpoint, as Congress pass the Secure Fence Act of 2006, which President Bush signed, which calls for 700 miles of double layer fencing to be built, for which there is not much more than 5% built. Congress refused to fund it when Democrats took over the House, and failed to do anything since. Certainly Barack Obama had little interest in building it.

That double layer wall could be more than Trump is asking for, and a federal suit by Democrats could have a judge saying “Congress passed the law, why are you not funding it?”

And maybe it would stop most of

Those kinds of things go on and on and on. This is what Democrats want to keep allowing.

Read: Open Borders Dems Consider Suing Trump If He Declares National Emergency On Border »

NC Small Business Blames Govt Shutdown For Failure To Get Loan

This story unintentionally makes the points that the federal government is way too big, is too involved with our lives, and has assumed way too many roles

From the link, which is a reprint from a sister site out of Charlotte

The government shutdown entered its 21st day on Friday, and local small businesses are starting to feel the impacts.

“What they are doing is stalling my business. One of the most important things in my life is to run this business,” said Brooks Troxler, the President and Owner of Trox Tech Inc.

Troxler owns the tech company that is currently based in Matthews and he employs seven people. (snip)

Troxler was set to start 2019 with moving into a brand new, larger, street front business in Charlotte. However, he needs a loan from the Small Business Administration to make that happen. The SBA is a federal agency that provides loans at low interest rates for small businesses.

“This is something a small business desperately needs. Not a lot of places give out loans to small businesses because they are uncertain,” said Troxler. “There are not many more options out there to get this type of loan.”

There are these things called “banks.” They provide loans. But, if we’re reading into this, it appears as if the business itself is shaky, so banks might not loan the money. So, the taxpayers are supposed to back a shaky loan? Of course, since the reporter failed to do the job and ask a simple question “why didn’t you go to a bank?” we are left to speculate.

But, then, the purpose here is to try and softly throw blame towards Trump as well as saying how super awesome government is and how we totally need them.

The hope was to be in the new property and the ability to hire four additional employees immediately.

“When we stop growing, we stop adding more employees. Right now, I cannot hire anymore employees because I do not have the space to do it,” said Troxler.

How about going and renting a property? Troxler is looking for a $550,000 loan from the SBA. Certainly, the bank would loan less to move into an existing building, right?

Read: NC Small Business Blames Govt Shutdown For Failure To Get Loan »

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