West Virginia sent Democrat Joe Manchin to Washington, D.C. to join Democrat Jay Rockefeller in the Senate, helping preserve the Democratic majority in the Senate.
Joe Manchin talked tough to get elected and promised to shoot down Obama’s cap-and-trade legislative plans:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xIJORBRpOPM?fs=1]
But Obama — who knows a little something about bringing a gun to a knife fight — brought the EPA to Joe Manchin’s cap-and-trade fight, because regulations and permitting do not require a vote by Senators:
A move by the Environmental Protection Agency to revoke the long-standing permits for a mammoth coal mine in West Virginia sends a strong signal that President Obama plans to implement key parts of his agenda even though newly empowered Republicans can block his plans in Congress.
In the aftermath of the November elections, many political pundits predicted that the once-unchecked Obama legislative machine would turn it’s energies to federal rulemaking as a way to circumvent Republicans on Capitol Hill. And the EPA’s decision last week suggests that those forecasts were spot-on.
Much to the consternation of the West Virginia delegation in Congress, the coal industry, and the working people of the Mountain State, the agency took the unprecedented step of revoking a mining permit that it had issued four years ago to Arch Coal’s Spruce No. 1 Mine in Logan County, West Virginia.
The revocation prompted unusually harsh responses from West Virginia’s two Democratic Senators.
At this point, there’s not much West Virginia can do. The state went for McCain, so it’s not exactly a swing state high on the administration’s “make nice” list.
Manchin is up for reelection in 2012, but by then, all that coal digging equipment will be rusted and the jobs long gone:
The EPA’s decision could affect dozens of other mining projects across Appalachia, where firms have been blasting the peaks off mountains for years to reach coal seams and then depositing the remaining rubble in surrounding valleys. While the federal government issued permits for hundreds of these activities under the Clinton and George W. Bush administrations, the EPA adopted new environmental guidelines in April and is now reviewing 33 other pending permits.
But not to worry, Mountaineers, Obama has a solution for all those empty hilltops. Windmills!
As for the rest of you states who think those dirty coal diggers are getting what they deserve, just wait until the Obamacare, offshore oil drilling, and other regulations are issued. You’ll get yours, my pretties, and your little dogs will too.
Update: Obama has come out in favor of a “21st Century” regulatory structure meant to embrace “common sense rules of the road that strengthen our country without unduly interfering with the pursuit of progress and the growth of our economy.” Don’t believe it, and the EPA is the first evidence. Obamacare in particular requires such a broad regulatory structure that the sheer weight of new regulations will freeze businesses within and outside of the health care industry.
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Comments
Welcome to the world of Texas as the EPA (now being sued by Texas) attempts to usurpt the 10th Amendment and take over a state controlled agency that will basically shut down our coal-fired power plants and cause, not just brown outs but, our electric costs to [necessarily] sky rocket. But not only did the EPA decide that states can no longer be in control of their own air quality, the EPA saw fit to impose that rule on Texas a year earlier than any other state. So Governor Perry and Attorney General Greg Abbott had no recourse but to sue the EPA. In the first court hearing, a federal judge denied Texas a stay of the EPA order.
Of course, Texas is another solid red state that went for McCain, and will not swing toward Obama in 2012. So, the Obama administration cares naught about the costs of electricity for Texans.
Obama is diligently dismantling America, weakening her, depriving her of everything she needs to live and fight. He is preparing her for takeover by his Islamic overlords. WVA ought to reject the EPA and do what it needs to. The EPA has no constitutional right to do anything. Ignore it. Fight.
The last election was an historic thrashing but the Dems managed to hold the Senate. Actually, the Reps won a higher percentage of Senate races than they did House races. Problem was there were more R seats up than D. Not so in 2012 & 2014.
Look at a red/blue map of the last house election. The only reason the Ds can put a softball team together is the population densities along the coasts. If that were the Senate they wouldn't be able to find a fourth for bridge.
United States Senator is a kinda nice job. I'm not sure that party loyalty is strong enough for these guys to do that sword and falling thingy.
I'm not making any predictions except that the consensus of the chattering class about Senate actions is terribly wrong. Doesn't make much difference to them. What's this intertube stuff?
If Obama wants to play hardball let's play. The House can de-fund the EPA.
Great article. I just linked to this from a blog post on Thurston Pundits on the case for buying energy stocks.
Although American's will pay through the nose for energy, energy stocks will go through the roof when our home grown energy crisis finally hits. When 1 barrel of oil sells for the same price as 2 barrels used to go for, that my friends is called a wicked awesome profit margin.
Gotta love the invisible hand of the market.