Stop Praising A Koch Victory That Increases Climate Change and Enriches the Oil Industry

Most people know someone who appears confused, but not because they are ignorant or stupid, but because they send contrary messages with their speech and actions. The key to garnering respect for having resolve to follow through on an “allegedly” important agenda is staying the course and not sending mixed signals that do not inspire confidence. This week Washington has been crazy with congratulations all around because Republicans passed a spending bill that gave them and their owners everything they wanted and more. It also gave the men that bought Republicans control of Congress a long yearned-for special gift that will increase their wealth immeasurably and impose some serious damage on the American people and the environment. No wonder Republicans were praising themselves; just one unrelated-to-spending rider in a spending bill gave the Kochs tens-of-billions annually and endangered Americans lives and well-being; it is what Koch Republicans regard as a win-win.

There has been the typical “great news” that low-income Americans will earn more in tax credits, but so did the rich and business. No American should think that minimal tax relief for the poor was a Democratic victory because Republicans have called for extending those low income credits as a means of adding tax cuts for the rich for a few years. Apparently the only way this Congress will ever do a little for the poor is doing a whole lot for the rich; especially the rich who bought Republicans control of Congress in the first place.

Now, what incited this particular screed is praise coming from Democrats and the White House for a “job well done” when within that “spending bill” is a monumental gift the Koch brothers have demanded for four decades. It is a curious gift from Washington that claims it is intent on combatting global climate change at the same time it took a giant step to increase global warming and praised Congress in the process. It is getting difficult to comprehend exactly what kind of climate change message Americans or world leaders are supposed to believe any more. On the one hand, it began to appear that with the President rejecting the Canadian corporation’s tar pipeline, signing a climate accord with Communist China, using executive action to rein in coal emissions among other actions that America was serious about leading on climate change.

In fact, as noted here,  it really seemed President Obama’s intent to address climate change was a national priority; especially after he hailed the  international climate agreement reached in Paris and even took credit for being “a driving force behind the deal.” He also sent a letter to Congress explaining his veto of two Koch anti-environment bills because “climate change is a profound threat that must be addressed.” However, then he praised the Koch Congress for passing a spending bill including an entirely unrelated rider erasing any veracity to the statement that “climate change is a profound threat that must be addressed.” Look, as an avid supporter of President Obama, it is not pleasant to tell the President he needs to stop talking out of both sides of his mouth; either climate change is profound enough threat to act accordingly, or Congress completed a fabulously fantastic feat in giving the Kochs tens-of-billions of dollars annually to increase climate change; it cannot be both.

When the President rejected the KeystoneXL pipeline, he said it was because there was no benefit to Americans to ship Canadian tar across country to ship overseas and rightly stated that none of Canada’s oil would have ever stayed in America. And yet he signed a “spending bill” that actually takes Americans’ oil, transports it across country to be shipped overseas, and then praises Congress to high heaven for doing right by the American people. So what does lifting the ban on shipping America’s oil overseas actually do for Americans, the environment, or the economy? Absolutely nothing and everyone with a pulse knows it.

The total net, or gross, benefit to the American people of taking domestic oil and sending it off to China is absolutely zero. The total net, or gross, detriment to the American people is higher fuel prices, greater dependency on Middle East oil, lost domestic refinery jobs, and a very significant  increase in fracking and the resulting scientifically proven increase in earthquakes, cancer and birth defects. It will also greatly increase dangerous rail tanker transportation, and increased carbon emissions the President said “must be addressed as a profound threat.” It is the last detriment that erases any sense that this country is serious about, or dedicated to, combatting global climate change when in fact it appears that the federal government exists for the sole purpose of enriching the Kochs and the oil industry. If that is an unfair assessment, then both Republicans and Democrats have to answer a couple of very simple questions.

The big question that Republicans, Democrats and President Obama need to answer is; precisely what does giving the Kochs tens-of-billions in oil profits annually have to do with spending in the federal budget?  And, exactly how does increasing carbon emissions, birth defects, cancer, earthquakes and fuel prices fit into Congress’ constitutional mandate to legislate for “the general welfare of the PEOPLE?” These are valid questions that at least President Obama has to answer; particularly after vetoing Republican anti-environmental legislation to “save the planet and Americans’ lives” the same day he signed off on a bipartisan-passed rider contrary to “saving the planet or Americans’ lives.”

Either this country is doing its part to save the planet and Americans’ lives or it is not. Only a brainless imbecile is unaware that Republicans exist to increase the wealth of the oil industry, but what is the deal with mixed signals from Democrats and the White House claiming that America is taking a leadership role in combatting climate change, or doing anything to make America less dependent on foreign sources of oil which is what allowing the oil industry to ship American oil out of country is NOT going to do.

This “spending bill” everyone is claiming victory over does have some one good thing in it to combat climate change. But unlike rejecting KeystoneXL, signing the Paris climate agreement, the accord with China, or banning drilling in the Arctic, there is a climate-destroying gift the oil industry knew was a done deal long before the “spending bill” was being contrived. One oil company has had plans in the works for some time to build one of those extremely dangerous oil train terminals  in Washington state to send America’s crude oil to China. The rail line will transport nearly as much toxic oil across country every day as the KeystoneXL pipeline was projected to carry; the only difference between Keystone and the Tesoro-Savage rail oil terminal  is that instead of shipping Canadian oil out of American ports from the Gulf coast, it will be Americans’ oil sent overseas from America’s West coast to create more jobs for foreign refinery workers. It also will create more carbon emissions to exacerbate global climate change that appears to be America’s position on combatting global warming. If that is not the case; why in dog’s name are Democrats hailing the “spending bill” as a great accomplishment when they know their gift to the Kochs is a detriment to the climate and the American people?

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Rmuse

Audio engineer and instructor for SAE. Writes op/ed commentary supporting Secular Humanist causes, and exposing suppression of women, the poor, and minorities. An advocate for freedom of religion and particularly, freedom of NO religion.

Born in the South, raised in the Mid-West and California for a well-rounded view of America; it doesn't look good.

Former minister, lifelong musician, Mahayana Zen-Buddhist.

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