Republicans Care About Climate Change Too
There is data to suggest that Republican-backed climate policies are more likely to actually pass and endure than Democratic ones. And the good news is that the vision part is already being worked on.
For years now, former South Carolina Rep. Bob Inglis, has been pushing a revenue-neutral carbon tax that would be offset by an equivalent cut to income or payroll taxes (or is returned to households in the form of a dividend). This is a potentially salable idea because conservatives like tax cuts—and there is a certain logic to increasing the cost of something we don’t want (carbon) in exchange for lowering the taxes on things we do want to encourage (income and paychecks).
If that’s not enticement enough, the Climate Leadership Council, founded by former Reagan Chief of Staff James Baker, former Secretary of State George Shultz, Harvard economics professor Greg Mankiw, and others is proposing an idea to help get corporations on board. Their carbon tax plan offers legal immunity for current carbon polluters, while returning the proceeds to households in the form of a dividend check to offset some of the costs that would surely be passed along to consumers. Mitt Romney calls the plan “thought-provoking,” and former GOP Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott supports it.
There are plenty of Republican ideas and "centrist" ground on which to base a climate policy.
Carbon taxes can be revenue-neutral, fracking and nuclear power (the best way to reduce carbon) can be encouraged, and energy companies can get on board with legal protections (and the ability to transition into a clean energy future), while remaining profitable.
Getting to that kind of solution is a problem only because, in our tribal politics, where you stand on climate is seen as akin to what political team you are on. That feeds a notion on the left that striving for common ground with Republicans and corporations is foolish, so you might as well insist on a strictly democratic socialist solution and fight until you get it. At the same time, many Republicans worry that if you give the progressive left an inch, they will take a foot.
At the end of the day, what’s missing here is what is missing in our politics, writ large: adult leadership.
The good news is that this at least allows for the possibility that, at some point, the right leaders will emerge.
The only problem is that is, by then, it may be too late.
Check out my full column about this at the Daily Beast
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This coming Friday, I will be interviewing former Massachusetts governor Bill Weld, who is running for the Republican nomination against President Trump. Weld supports carbon pricing—as well as nuclear energy and natural gas—and I plan to ask him about his climate plan.
If you’re in or around Austin, Texas, and want to watch me interview Bill Weld, I’d love to see you there!
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