GOP Releases Talking Points on Waxman-Markey To Encourage All Republicans To Lie In Unison

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The GOP has released its โ€œTalking Points on the Democrat National Energy Tax,โ€ in an effort to get all Republicans under the same tent in their ad hominem attacks on the Waxman-Markey โ€œAmerican Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009โ€ currently being debated by Congress.

According to the GOP, โ€œThe truth behind the Democratโ€™s [sic] cap and tax plan is that it will lead to more taxes, fewer jobs, and more government intrusion.โ€

Dang, Obama thought theyโ€™d never figure out his master plan! The GOP is so good!

The talking points are part of the GOPโ€™s plan for a โ€œcommunications offensive over the next four weeksโ€ to assert that the Waxman-Markey legislation โ€œamounts to a national energy tax that will destroy jobs and increase costs for every singleย American.โ€

Rep. Mike Pence (R-IN), who stayed on message (sort of) when he stated recently that the cap and trade legislation โ€œamounts to an economic declaration of war on the Midwest by liberals on Capitol Hill,โ€ has been named by House Republican Leader John Boehner (R-OH) to head the new House GOP American Energy Solutions Group (a.k.a. the Drill Baby Drill!ย Group).

The group is co-chaired by Pence and Reps. Fred Upton (R-MI) and John Shimkus (R-IL).ย  Shimkus has recently spouted some truly outrageous statements in an effort to appear relevant in the climate and energy debates, although he isnโ€™t making much sense in theย process.

According to Environment and Energy Daily (subscriptionย reqโ€™d):

Last week at an Energy and Commerce Committee hearing, [Shimkus] said that he considered the [Waxman-Markey] bill โ€œthe largest assault on democracy and freedom in this country that I have ever experienced. Iโ€™ve lived through some tough times in Congress โ€“ impeachment, two wars, terrorist attacks. I fear this more than all of the above activities that have happened.โ€

A month earlier, Shimkus quoted the Bible and Godโ€™s promise to Noah that God would not send another devastating flood onto the Earth. โ€œThe Earth will end only when God decides itโ€™s time to be over,โ€ Shimkus said. โ€œMan will not destroy this Earth. This Earth will not be destroyed by a flood.โ€

Shimkus even suggests higher temperatures arenโ€™t such a bad thing. โ€œDid you know that more people now die from cold than from heat?โ€ he asked a reporter during an interview this week.
[Source: Environment and Energy Daily, โ€œFor this congressman, skepticism is a matter of faith,โ€ April 30,ย 2009]ย 

Apparently, Shimkus didnโ€™t get the memo with the GOP talking points, instead relying on his Manual for Rapture-Ready Republicans. Shimkus is just fine with being viewed as a raving lunatic, telling E&E News that โ€œTo be branded as a lunatic based on your values โ€ฆ thatโ€™s probably very similar to great leaders of the past and the founding fathers who were viewed by many as radicals.โ€

Sure it is!ย  Keep telling yourselfย that.

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Kevin is a contributor and strategic adviser to DeSmog. He runs the digital marketing agency Spake Media House. Named a โ€œGreen Heroโ€ by Rolling Stone Magazine and one of the โ€œTop 50 Tweetersโ€ on climate change and environment issues, Kevin has appeared in major news media outlets around the world for his work on digital campaigning. Kevin has been involved in the public policy arena in both the United States and Canada for more than a decade. For five years he was the managing editor of DeSmogBlog.com. In this role, Kevinโ€™s research into the โ€œclimate denial industryโ€ and the right-wing think tank networks was featured in news media articles around the world. He is most well known for his ground-breaking research into David and Charles Kochโ€™s massive financial investments in the Republican and tea partyย networks. Kevin is the first person to be designated a โ€œCertified Expertโ€ on theย political and community organizing platformย NationBuilder. Prior to DeSmog, Kevin worked in various political and government roles. He was Senior Advisor to the Minister of State for Multiculturalism and a Special Assistant to the Minister of State for Asia Pacific, Foreign Affairs for the Government of Canada. Kevin also worked in various roles in the British Columbia provincial government in the Office of the Premier and the Ministry of Health. In 2008 Kevin co-founded a groundbreaking new online election tool called Vote for Environment which was later nominated for a World Summit Award in recognition of the worldโ€™s best e-Content and innovative ICTย applications. Kevin moved to Washington, DC in 2010 where he worked for two years as the Director of Online Strategy for Greenpeace USA and has since returned to his hometown of Vancouver, Canada.

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