Kerry-Lieberman bill generates power for government, special interests

This bill is nothing more than an assault on taxpayers, the economy and the energy sector and a massive wealth transfer to energy and other companies, such as General Electric, that bought space at the trough.

Sens. Kerry and Lieberman create a $2 trillion carbon derivative trading market that could easily end up being a $2 trillion slush fund for Wall Street firms such as Goldman Sachs and Kleiner Perkins. In Europe, their carbon trading market has been so rife with fraud, that we would naturally want to duplicate one here that the likes of Enron felt would make them more money than market manipulation of power in California.

What’s more, with giveaways to big business and other industries that helped write this monstrosity, the only way this bill can pass is by once again ignoring regular order and bypassing the committees of jurisdiction and instead taking it straight to the floor of the Senate so that the American people will not have time to weigh in their opposition with their senators. Instead, back-room deals will be made to buy the votes of reluctant senators, much like was done with the health care fiasco.

Instead, we need a comprehensive approach to bridging Americas’ energy needs from coal, natural gas, oil, nuclear power, renewable sources and technologies yet to be invented. We need to support policies that make affordable and reliable energy a reality, energy that will fuel our high standard of living, protect a clean environment and serve as bridge to the future. Public policies, such as the Kerry Lieberman bill should not arbitrarily or unfairly discriminate among energy sources and should be based on sound science and cost-effective and growth-promoting government regulation.

Mike Carey is President of The American Council for Affordable and Reliable Energy (ACARE) a coalition of businesses, nonprofit organizations and individuals who support public policies that encourage the production and delivery of the energy required by a growing economy.