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

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

According to the GOP, “The truth behind the Democrat’s [sic] cap and tax plan is that it will lead to more taxes, fewer jobs, and more government intrusion.”

Dang, Obama thought they’d never figure out his master plan! The GOP is so good!

The talking points are part of the GOP’s plan for a “communications offensive over the next four weeks” to assert that the Waxman-Markey legislation “amounts to a national energy tax that will destroy jobs and increase costs for every single American.”

Rep. Mike Pence (R-IN), who stayed on message (sort of) when he stated recently that the cap and trade legislation “amounts to an economic declaration of war on the Midwest by liberals on Capitol Hill,” 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! Group).

The group is co-chaired by Pence and Reps. Fred Upton (R-MI) and John Shimkus (R-IL).  Shimkus has recently spouted some truly outrageous statements in an effort to appear relevant in the climate and energy debates, although he isn’t making much sense in the process.

According to Environment and Energy Daily (subscription req’d):

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

A month earlier, Shimkus quoted the Bible and God’s promise to Noah that God would not send another devastating flood onto the Earth. “The Earth will end only when God decides it’s time to be over,” Shimkus said. “Man will not destroy this Earth. This Earth will not be destroyed by a flood.”

Shimkus even suggests higher temperatures aren’t such a bad thing. “Did you know that more people now die from cold than from heat?” he asked a reporter during an interview this week.
[Source: Environment and Energy Daily, “For this congressman, skepticism is a matter of faith,” April 30, 2009] 

Apparently, Shimkus didn’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 “To be branded as a lunatic based on your values … that’s probably very similar to great leaders of the past and the founding fathers who were viewed by many as radicals.”

Sure it is!  Keep telling yourself that.

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Kevin is a contributor and strategic adviser to DeSmogBlog.

He runs the digital marketing agency Spake Media House. Named a “Green Hero” by Rolling Stone Magazine and one of the “Top 50 Tweeters” 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, Kevin’s research into the “climate denial industry” 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 Koch’s massive financial investments in the Republican and tea party networks.

Kevin is the first person to be designated a “Certified Expert” on the political and community organizing platform NationBuilder.

Prior to DeSmogBlog, 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 world’s best e-Content and innovative ICT 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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