The likely primary upset of Alaska Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski could signal big changes on the GOP side of the Senate Energy Committee -- and possibly a shift toward hard-line opposition to any Democrat legislation.
Billionaire Brothers David and Charles Koch, who own the petroleum-based Koch Industries, are among the top ten air polluters in the country and stout opponents of environmental regulation. Their empire has vastly outdone ExxonMobil in funding opposition to legislation to control climate change and has been dubbed by Greenpeace a "kingpin of climate science denial."
"The BP oil spill was a massive 'failure' in government oversight and administrations should be forced to consult with experts in the field before making expansive drilling policy, top officials of the White House's oil spill commission said on Wednesday."
"Two weeks after BP's Macondo well blew out in the Gulf of Mexico, the federal government's Minerals Management Service finalized a regulation intended to control the undersea pressures that threaten deepwater drilling operations. MMS did not write the rule. As it had dozens of times before, the agency adopted language provided by the oil industry's trade group, the American Petroleum Institute, and incorporated it into the Federal Register."
The fossil fuel industry outspent environmentalists eight to one on lobbying as the two forces battled over climate change legislation in 2009, according to a new report from the Center for Responsive Politics.
"A group of Democrats who defied their party to oppose a landmark climate bill last year is facing attacks by political challengers from an unexpected direction: Cap and trade is being used against them, despite the fact that they voted no."
"A Virginia Circuit Court is hearing oral arguments today in the fight between Virginia's Attorney General and the University of Virginia over the records of a former professor."
"Citing the Gulf oil spill, the senator says the Republican's stance could threaten the jobs of 400,000 workers. Analysts say oil drilling is one of her most effective wedge issues."
"Lawmakers have criticized BP PLC for attempting to 'muzzle' scientists researching the Gulf of Mexico oil spill with confidentiality agreements and blocking the 'open exchange of scientific data and analysis.' But the government is employing similar tactics itself."
"The Navajo Nation's proposed coal plant always rested on shaky ground. Now, it may collapse entirely."
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