Interchange Blog
White House Floats Veto Threat for Incoming Energy Bill
Now that the House energy bill is in the Senate and on its way to the White House, the New York Times is reporting–surprise!–that President Bush is warming up his veto pen. In particular, while it seemed that industry and auto maker interests had come reluctantly to heel under political pressure orchestrated by Nancy Pelosi, it turns out that rumours of their surrender were greatly exaggerated. Cowed by the Democrat-controlled House of Representatives, they have taken cover within the welcoming confines of the White House, where they hope to use the threat of veto to squash key bill provisions that they were unable to purge from the bill during House committee debates.
You can read the full story here.
White House grumbling specifically targets the bill’s auto mileage standards that would require automakers to meet a fleet average of 35 miles per gallon by 2020. Most disingenuous is this precious bit of obfuscation from Allan B. Hubbard, the director of the White House National Economic Council, who says the House bill “creates substantial amounts of regulatory uncertainty and confusion” over which agencies will have authority for enforcement.
Though the House passed a surprisingly robust bill, there is a significant likelihood that it will be watered down into something unrecognizable before it becomes law. In addition to the renewed assault on its 35-mpg CAFE standard, it is also unlikely to emerge from the Senate with its requirements for increased use of renewable energy sources and its tax package intact.
The irony, of course, is that all this resistance is offered in the name of protecting the economy. But if we want to have a strong economy in 10 or 20 years, we would do well to tackle our climate and energy problems now. The fixes will be a lot more expensive later. That is, if it even remains possible to fix the problems at that point.