Climate debate re-energized

Since the House passed its global warming measure 219-212 in June, debate had been muted by several other big issues.

{mosads}But now, aided by the Copenhagen climate summit, climate is back, front and center.

On Monday, the Obama administration took a big step toward regulating greenhouse gases if the Senate fails to do so, releasing a finding that carbon dioxide and other emissions from power plants, cars and elsewhere threaten human welfare.

Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.), leading the charge for climate legislation in the upper chamber, said, “The message to Congress is crystal-clear: Get moving.”

Meanwhile, Rep. Darrell Issa (Calif.), the senior Republican on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, late last week said the U.N.’s decision to investigate whether some of its climate change research had been manipulated constituted a “direct rebuke” of the Obama administration.

Amid the controversy over the research, the term “Climategate” was born.

Sen. James Inhofe (R-Okla.), the ranking member on the Environment and Public Works Committee who will be traveling to Copenhagen, Denmark, next week, said the Senate climate bill “is dead.”

(Incidentally, isn’t it odd how both sides in what is clearly a very lively debate pretend to believe that the other side is finished?)

The Senate bill, as cleared by the environmental panel, is far short of the necessary 60 votes, and it will probably die in this Congress. But, as noted, the debate is alive and well, increasing the chances that climate change legislation will be enacted down the line.

Throughout this year, President Barack Obama has said his most pressing issue is healthcare. The flagship issue for Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), who worked closely with the administration to pass healthcare reform through the lower chamber, is climate change.

She knows that there may be no better time than now for Congress to act. With a comfortable majority in the House and 60 senators in the Democratic Conference, it is more likely that her party will be weaker rather than stronger on Capitol Hill in future Congresses. Historical trends and political analysts indicate there will be fewer Democratic lawmakers after the midterm elections. If the votes are not there, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on Monday suggested it could fill the vacuum.

This is not the first time the Obama administration has indicated it will use its executive branch authority when the legislative branch falters. After years of congressional inaction, the Federal Communications Commission in October issued new rules on net neutrality. And the Treasury Department has not been shy in exerting its authority on executive compensation.

The arguments for and against climate change are passionate, and perhaps too partisan for Congress to pass a bill. If climate change is going to be tackled, it will probably be left to the Obama administration — as well as the judicial branch, because legal challenges will certainly be filed against any EPA action.