Republican Women of Clifton

“…if you don’t like your current insurance company, you can change insurance companies. But if you ended up with a single national health system, you wouldn’t be able to change bureaucrats.”  Link

by Donna Curtin

Whether your views about global warming put you in the skeptics’ camp, the alarmists’ camp or somewhere in between, the issue may soon become a very personal one for you and your family. A 2007 5-4 decision by the Supreme Court gave the EPA permission to regulate CO2 emissions under the Clean Air Act. On April 17, 2009, the agency issued a “finding,” declaring CO2 (a harmless substance essential to life on earth) to be an environment-endangering pollutant which, indeed, must be regulated. The Waxman-Markey Bill, currently before Congress, attempts to do that by :

1. mandating the use of low-carbon motor fuels and a drastic increase in electricity production from renewable sources (e.g. solar and wind).
2. by a system of “cap and trade,” under which the EPA will set an absolute limit (cap) on the amount of CO2 that can be emitted into the atmosphere by regulated entities (power plants, factories, schools, hospitals, etc.) in a given year.

Since 85% of American energy is produced by fossil fuels whose unavoidable byproduct is CO2, these regulated entities will need ration coupons or “pollution permits” (quotas) in order to carry on business. Those entities that can cut their greenhouse gas emissions below their quotas can sell their remaining allotment to businesses that cannot. However, the emissions cap will be reduced every year, requiring greater cuts, more costs to businesses and causing more harm to the economy and society.  In an analysis of Waxman-Markey for the Heritage Foundation, authors William Beach, David Kreutzer, Karen Campbell and Ben Lieberman project that by 2035, cap and trade will:

• reduce total Gross Domestic Product by $9.6 trillion;
• destroy 1,105,000 jobs/year on average, with peak years seeing unemployment rise by 2,479,000;
• raise electricity rates by 90%, after adjusting for inflation;
• raise gasoline prices by 74% (inflation-adjusted);
• raise residential natural gas prices by 55%;
• raise the average family yearly energy bill by $1,500;
• increase the federal debt by 26%, for an additional $29,150 per person.

The authors point out that, for the years 2012-2035, a family of 4 will see its direct energy costs rise by $22,800. These inflation-adjusted figures do not include the indirect costs of higher prices for more energy-efficient cars and appliances, the inconvenience and danger of driving smaller, lighter vehicles or the discomfort of using less heating in winter and air-conditioning in summer. Read the rest of this entry »

Obama said with Cap and Trade
Energy costs’d “necessarily Skyrocket.”
He doesn’t care that this would
Leave less money in your pocket.

Can’t afford to heat your home
In winter? That’s a bummer.
Grandma’s having heat stroke? Tough!
No more AC in the summer!

You’ll have to drive a smaller car,
Your gasoline he’ll ration.
Building codes from California will
Become the height of fashion. Read the rest of this entry »

We hear a lot about improving education during elections, but what does it mean? Here’s an interesting look at the issue, by taking a look at other countries:

A disturbing conclusion emerged from my travels – that Global Education Standards have passed the United States by, and Americans have no idea that it has happened. Particularly in India and China, K-12 education produces students clearly more advanced in math and science but also better-rounded in literature, history, language, economics, art and music.

Two Million Minutes site |  Must-Read Articles

Our democratic Congressman Gerry Connolly sold out, probably as would be expected, and voted yes to the Cap and Trade bill, HR 2454 (Roll Call). In fact, he really would have preferred if the House had used it’s time on naming post offices video here.

From the National Federation of Republican Women

1. Democrats’ Government Takeover Will Cost Middle-Class Families and Small Businesses Billions. Though House Democrats don’t know (or won’t say) how much their government takeover will cost, here’s what we do know: the plan will make health care more expensive and hit the middle class particularly hard with higher taxes, rationed care, and new health care costs. As millions of families and small businesses are struggling to make ends meet while making responsible choices, this plan forces those that make responsible decisions to foot the bill for those who don’t.

2. Democrats’ Government Takeover Will Cost Tens of Millions Their Current Health Care Coverage. The House Democrats’ plan could force more than 100 million Americans out of their current health care plan and onto the government rolls, according to a Lewin Group study published earlier this year. A Congressional Budget Office report on a similar plan authored by Senate Democrats that would force at least 23 million Americans off of their current plans. According to the Associated Press, even the White House admits that the President’s promises about allowing the American people to keep their health care shouldn’t be taken literally. Read the rest of this entry »