Carl Pope: Who's Paying for These Elections, Anyway?

Carl Pope: Who's Paying for These Elections, Anyway? HPFB.init();
HuffPost's QuickRead... ShareBox.ad = function (tag_id){if ($(tag_id) == undefined) return; if ($(tag_id).innerHTML != '') return;ad_spec = {"zone_info": "huffpost.green/blog;green=1;nickname=carl-pope;entry_id=763404;google-wind-energy=1;koch-brothers=1;proposition-23=1;valero=1;valero-energy-corp=1","ord": 1287095639,"tile": 3,"width": 300,"height": 250,"el_id": tag_id + "_js","class_name": "ad_block ad_wide top","type": "iframe"}HuffPoUtil.WEDGJE.write(ad_spec, tag_id);};Loading... BIG NEWS:Climate Change|Animals|Gulf Oil Spill|Local Food| Smarter Ideas| More... | LogoutLog In| Sign Up  The Huffington Post October 14, 2010 Front PagePoliticsBusinessMediaEntertainmentComedySportsStyle WorldGreenTechFood TravelLiving ArtsBooks ReligionImpactEducation College NY LA Chicago Denver Blogs


Carl PopeChairman, Sierra Club

Posted: October 14, 2010 05:47 PMBIOBecome a FanGet Email AlertsBloggers' Indexfunction hide_user_promo_bubble_second_stage() {var bubble = $("user_promo_bubble");bubble.style.display = "none";}function hide_user_promo_bubble() {var bubble = $("user_promo_bubble");var myAnim = new YAHOO.util.Anim(bubble, {opacity: {to: 0}}, 1, YAHOO.util.Easing.easeOut);myAnim.animate();setTimeout("hide_user_promo_bubble_second_stage()", 1100);}function handle_promo_username(params) {var bubble = $("user_promo_bubble");var img = $("user_promo_bubble_image");var anchor = $("user_promo_bubble_link");if (params.has_photo == "true") {img.src = "http://images.huffingtonpost.com/profiles/" + params.user_id + "-tiny.png";} else {img.style.display = "none";Dom.addClass(anchor, "wide");}anchor.innerHTML = "Shared by " + params.user_name;anchor.href = "http://www.huffingtonpost.com/social/" + params.user_name;bubble.style.display = "block";var myAnim = new YAHOO.util.Anim(bubble, {opacity: {to: 1}}, 2, YAHOO.util.Easing.easeOut);myAnim.animate();}if (HuffPoUtil.getUrlVar("user_promo")) {YAHOO.util.Event.onDOMReady(function() {var parts = document.location.hash.split(","), shared_by = "", badge = "", i;if (parts.length Who's Paying for These Elections, Anyway? What's Your Reaction: HPConfig.entry_digg_promo_url = 'http://www.huffingtonpost.com/carl-pope/whos-paying-for-these-ele_b_763404.html';digg facebook Twitter stumble redditdel.ico.us Inspiring
Enlightening
Infuriating
Scary
Helpful
Amazing
Innovative
Adorable
Read More:Google Wind Energy, Koch Brothers, Proposition 23, Valero, Valero Energy Corp., Green News
Get Green AlertsEmailComments

San Francisco -- I'm going to let you in a secret -- a dirty little secret -- but in a fun way. Before you read any more of this post, listen to this new version of an iconic Texas song.

That clip explains a lot. In some ways it's kind of puzzling. Just as the Obama administration announces its support for a massive wind-turbine project in Eastern Oregon, and Google and other partners launch a proposal for an enormous, game-changing offshore wind and transmission system for the East Coast, the Republican House Campaign Committee launches an all-out ad war on the whole concept of a clean-energy economy. The National Republican Congressional Committee has launched a blitz attack on ten members of Congress who have voted for the very federal funds that will make wind projects like the Oregon and East Coast initiatives possible.

The NRCC's claim is that since some of the wind-turbine components are manufactured in China, this was actually a vote to create jobs in China. Setting aside the fact that only three out of the 33,000 wind turbines installed in the U.S. were manufactured in China, it's odd that Republicans, who generally advocate much freer trade and fewer restrictions on sourcing imports from China, should suddenly have changed their tune. Indeed, back in the spring, Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell strongly opposed the limited "Buy American" provisions included in the stimulus package by the Obama administration.

So why are the Republicans going after clean energy so strongly, since polls consistently show tremendous public support for exactly that?  Perhaps it's because, as the saying goes, "he who pays the piper calls the tune." And the media assault on the Obama administration and the Democrats has been funded, overwhelmingly, by coal and oil interests trying to maintain their monopoly as America's energy suppliers. This has been widely reported -- from the incredible Jane Mayer expose of how Koch oil has funded the Tea Party, among other anti-Obama assaults, to more routine reporting on where big oil and coal money is flowing this year.  But if you want to see the most impressive visual representing of how dirty energy is paying for this year's election -- think back to the "Valero Oil of Texas" ditty you just heard -- take a look at this very cool graphic showing the funding base of the efforts to stop California's clean-air programs, the infamous Prop 23.

If we don't do everything we can during the next 20 days to get everyone we know to vote, we run the risk of handing this country over the oil and coal -- and we know how good a job they will do from the eight-year run they bought for George Bush.  How about sending the cool song and the graphic out to all your friends to start?

 

Follow Carl Pope on Twitter:www.twitter.com/CarlPope

More in Green...
Tales Of Attacks By Supposedly Domesticated Exotic...Oil Spill Cleanup, Clean Energy, And Marine...Euthanized Dog Comes Back To Life (VIDEO)Humpback Whale Swims 6,200 Miles, Longest Mammal...   function returnCommentDetails(params) {// this is the proxy method. just proxyreturn CommentsSharer.getHoveredCommentDetails(params);};function callback_for_loaded_Badges(params) {//console.log("callback_for_loaded_Badges() called");CommentsSharer.badge_object = params.badge_object; // not actualy used, by could be usefulCommentsSharer.badge_holder_id = params.badge_holder_id; // not actualy used, by could be useful}diggstumbleredditdel.ico.usCommentsSharer.initBadgeBox("comment_share_popup"); Comments 0 Pending Comments 0 View FAQ Login or connect with: More Login OptionsLogin with: Google Account Huffpost Account Yahoo AccountYou must be logged in to comment.Post CommentPreview CommentTo reply to a Comment: Click "Reply" at the bottom of the comment; after being approved your comment will appear directly underneath the comment you replied to.

Share your Comment:

Post to Facebook.Post to Blogger.Post to Twitter.Post to WordPress.Post to TypePad.Post to Tumblr.Post to Yahoo! View All Recency  |  Popularity     New comments on this entry — Click to refresh Loading comments… Loading twitter module... Most Popular on HuffPostnj1RqBJbyjPhEmms1EaZYj2n%2B3EIpjeRZF6Q%2Bxd65odaZa9JZx2pPHMLmwBx7wSq9LuHW9lsfN46rTFOZ%2F81wA%3D%3DCvAnOteXEp2f444aqvLOQFBJ29gIn6rDoFAE6r07pgJySRqRo6RWmx5n4khJXh2NpQu93u053jR4TlEy2DVn0g%3D%3D1 of 2 Chile Miners Rescue: LIVE Updates (VIDEO)
10,776 Comments Helen Thomas Cries, Calls Obama 'Reprehensible'
5,004 Comments PHOTOS: Minka Kelly Strips
299 Comments 11 Freedoms That Drunks, Slackers, Prostitutes And Pirates Pioneered
223 Comments Steve Lombardo 21 Days to Go and Democrats Facing a 60 - 70...
753 Comments 'Word Made Flesh'
150 Comments Gavin Rossdale Admits To Gay Fling
1,031 Comments NPR Bans Employees From Stewart, Colbert Rallies
8,009 Comments WATCH: Christine O'Donnell Stumped, Can't Name A Recent SCOTUS Decision She Disagrees With
15,017 Comments Don't Miss HuffPost Bloggers1 of 5Robin Quivers Nutty for NutritionRev. Jesse Jackson GOP Runs on the "Big Lie"Dan Rather Help Not Wanted?Bernard-Henri Lévy Sakineh’s Son Arrested: The Great Silence of Conformist ThinkersHenry Louis Gates, Jr. Faces of America: Mehmet Oz and the Immigrant Story PedigreeAl Gore Standing Up Against the Oil Lobby, in California and BeyondAlec Baldwin Waiting for "Superman": A Monumentally Important FilmMelinda Gates Why We Tell Success Stories (VIDEO)Ted Danson A Pacific Gem, ProtectedMichael Gerson The Success and the Failures of the Religious RightHot Trends dog comes back to life pamela anderson prop 109 rinderpest thyroid cancer  #ad_most_pop_234x60_req_wrapper {border:1px solid #cccccc;margin-bottom:10px;padding:30px 22px 10px;background-color:#ffffff;background-image:url('/images/slug_most_popular.gif');background-repeat:no-repeat;background-position:center 10px} Follow Huffington Post HUFFPOST'S BIG NEWS PAGES Michael Jordan: 'I Could Have Scored 100 Points' In The NBA TodayNBA Marion Cotillard's Strapless & Leather LBD: Love It Or Leave It? (PHOTOS, POLL)Celebrity Style Ramin Setoodeh, Controversial Writer Of Gay Actors Article, Returns to NewsweekMagazines Air Force Officer Parachutes Into Michigan Stadium To Deliver Game Ball (FIRST PERSON VIDEO)Video Michelle Obama To Colorado Donors: 'This Is The Hard Part' (PHOTOS)Michelle Obama Harvard Business School Receives $50M Gift From Indian ConglomerateThe Northeast 10 Up-And-Coming Art Cities In America (Photos)Arts Thousands Gather At University Of Michigan For Peace Corps AnniversaryThe Midwest Police: NYC Officer Shot Bank Robber in MidtownCrimemore big news pages »  
Front PagePoliticsBusinessMediaEntertainmentComedySportsStyleWorldGreenTechFood Travel Living Arts Books Religion Impact Education College NY LA Chicago Denver BlogsAdvertise | Make HuffPost your Home Page | RSS | Careers | FAQ | Contact UsCopyright © 2010 HuffingtonPost.com, Inc. | User Agreement | Privacy | Comment Policy | About Us | Powered by Movable Type

HuffPost Lightbox

View the original article here