John McCain, formerly one of the most environmentalist people on the right, has decided that fighting global warming is the worst thing ever -- and he's attacking his buddies on the issue
For their part, people who know McCain think this is all a big mystery.
Maybe a Rasmussen poll (courtesy of Matthew Yglesias) can shed a little light on things:
So he's planning on running to the right of right. And this means hating the environment. I'm only being slightly hyperbolic here. The biggest motivation for Republican voters in opposing environmental legislation is that the left likes it, so it must be wrong. If the cure for global warming were to put more oxygen into the atmosphere, there'd be a movement on the right to eliminate oxygen altogether. If that kills everyone and everything, so be it. The guiding principle here is that lefties are always wrong.
"This seems like pretty much terrible news for the world," Yglesias writes. "The most likely path between Point A and Senate passage of a reasonable climate bill is for McCain to rediscover his interest in the issue. But that’s not the sort of thing a Senator worried about a right-wing primary challenge is likely to do. It would be different if, say, Janet Napolitano were mounting a strong challenge for the seat, but instead Democrats have no major contender in the field."
Politico:Sens. Lindsey Graham and Joe Lieberman have been working overtime to craft a climate bill that can attract significant GOP support. But they aren’t exactly scoring points with their mutual best friend in the Senate, John McCain.
“Their start has been horrendous,” McCain said Thursday. “Obviously, they’re going nowhere.”
McCain has emerged as a vocal opponent of the climate bill — a major reversal for the self-proclaimed maverick who once made defying his party on global warming a signature issue of his career.
For their part, people who know McCain think this is all a big mystery.
Former aides are mystified by what they see as a retreat on the issue, given McCain’s long history of leadership on climate legislation. McCain and Lieberman authored their first climate bill in 2003 and reintroduced the legislation in 2005 and 2007. “The only reason we are debating climate legislation in the Senate right now is because of the leadership he showed three Congresses ago,” said Tim Profeta, a former staffer for the Connecticut independent on climate issues who is now a professor at Duke University.
“I wouldn’t be here on this issue without him,” said Graham, a South Carolina Republican who spent much of last fall campaigning for McCain. “He’s the guy that introduced me to the climate problem.”
Maybe a Rasmussen poll (courtesy of Matthew Yglesias) can shed a little light on things:
Senator John McCain’s future in the U.S. Senate may be a little less assured than previously thought.
A new Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of likely 2010 Republican Primary voters in Arizona finds the longtime incumbent in a virtual tie with potential challenger J.D. Hayworth. McCain earns 45% of the vote, while Hayworth picks up 43%.
So he's planning on running to the right of right. And this means hating the environment. I'm only being slightly hyperbolic here. The biggest motivation for Republican voters in opposing environmental legislation is that the left likes it, so it must be wrong. If the cure for global warming were to put more oxygen into the atmosphere, there'd be a movement on the right to eliminate oxygen altogether. If that kills everyone and everything, so be it. The guiding principle here is that lefties are always wrong.
"This seems like pretty much terrible news for the world," Yglesias writes. "The most likely path between Point A and Senate passage of a reasonable climate bill is for McCain to rediscover his interest in the issue. But that’s not the sort of thing a Senator worried about a right-wing primary challenge is likely to do. It would be different if, say, Janet Napolitano were mounting a strong challenge for the seat, but instead Democrats have no major contender in the field."
