Sarah Palin takes on Obama administration's cap-and-trade

Successful leaders become targets which opens them to public attacks from those who feel threatened by that success.

Such a leader is Sarah Palin who wrote an op-ed column for the Washington Post on Wednesday excoriating cap-and-trade and unloading on the Obama administration for its short-sightedness and desire to burden the nation with a deepening financial quagmire:

Unfortunately, many in the national media would rather focus on the personality-driven political gossip of the day than on the gravity of these challenges. So, at risk of disappointing the chattering class, let me make clear what is foremost on my mind and where my focus will be:

I am deeply concerned about President Obama's cap-and-trade energy plan, and I believe it is an enormous threat to our economy. It would undermine our recovery over the short term and would inflict permanent damage.

American prosperity has always been driven by the steady supply of abundant, affordable energy. Particularly in Alaska, we understand the inherent link between energy and prosperity, energy and opportunity, and energy and security. Consequently, many of us in this huge, energy-rich state recognize that the president's cap-and-trade energy tax would adversely affect every aspect of the U.S. economy.

She must have hit a nerve with the liberals because John Kerry fired back:

"The global climate change crisis threatens our economy and our national security in profound ways," writes Kerry.

"Governor Palin need no look further than the view from her front porch in Alaska to see how destructive this crisis can be," says Kerry....

Despite the fact scientists are now agreeing the earth has been cooling for much of the past decade, the volley fired by Kerry was taken up at the Huffington Post, Daily Kos, and other lib outlets.

Today Investor's Business Daily opines on Gov. Palin's apparent bulls-eye hit that keeps drawing Sen. Kerry and other Democrats out to take her on:

The political death of Sarah Palin has been greatly exaggerated. In a devastating op-ed in the Washington Post, Alaska's governor exposes the cap-and-tax fraud that has nothing to do with earth's temperature and everything to do with government control of the economy.

She also exposes the stealth socialism ambitions of the Democratic left and once again points out the availability of abundant "shovel-ready" resources under America's soil, off America's shores and even in America's rocks.

Judging from the reaction from Sen. Kerry and the political arm of George Soros, one must ask: If Palin is spent as a political force, why is everyone on the left so worried and talking about her?

Worried, indeed. Gov. Palin is hammering back at the Democrats at a time when many on the right shrink from taking a stand. IBD tells Sen. Kerry exactly what Gov. Palin can see from her front porch:

From Palin's front porch, senator, she can see "the largest private-sector energy project in history" — her "3,000-mile natural gas pipeline (that) will transport hundreds of trillions of cubic feet of our clean natural gas to hungry markets across America."

From Palin's front porch you can also see the 2,000-acre part of ANWR's frozen tundra that contains 10.4 billion barrels of recoverable oil (such estimates often underestimate actual yields) and that could supply all the oil needs of Kerry's Massachusetts for 75 years.

And from her front porch, Palin can see the Chukchi Sea northwest of Alaska's landmass. Awaiting development there, according to the U.S. Geological Survey, are 1.6 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, or 30% of the world's supply, and 83 billion barrels of oil, 4% of global conventional resources.

MoveOn.org began e-mailing members Tuesday, asking them to fund a rapid response ad blasting Palin's op-ed. Soros' group said Palin was positioning herself as the face of conservative opposition to Obama's energy policy, telling supporters her op-ed was "a marvel of misinformation and outright lies."

What really hurts is Palin's truth. Kerry and MoveOn.org say Sarah Palin must be stopped. We say, drill, baby, drill.

How many are fearless enough to step directly into the path of MoveOn.org, George Soros, and the Democrat lefties?

Sarah Palin is that kind of fearless conservative leader who already has a huge base across the nation who believe in her. I firmly believe the best for her is yet to come.

Tom Perriello (D-5th CD) supports ideology of Dems instead of economic interests of working people

"Thank you Tom Perriello -- for stabbing the working people of the 5th District in the back."

So begins a column by John Barnhart in the Bedford Bulletin. He goes on to say:

On June 29, 41 House Democrats had the courage to stand up to Supreme Leader Nancy Pelosi. They voted against her cap-and-trade energy bill. Congressman Perriello was not one of them. He voted for this nightmare, which narrowly passed the House of Representatives by seven votes.

Writing about lost jobs, ideology over "global warming," and industry moving overseas, Mr. Barnhart lays it on the line. He ends by saying:

So, thank you Tom Perriello for supporting the ideology of your party’s well-heeled elite instead of the economic interests of the 5th District’s working people.

Indeed.

These GOP reps voted FOR cap-and-trade

Who were the GOP representatives who voted FOR Cap-and-Trade? From NewsMax:

Friday's vote was 219-212. The legislation was supported by 211 Democrats and eight aisle-crossing GOP members: Reps. Mary Bono (Calif.), Michael Castle (Del.), Mark Kirk (Ill.), Leonard Lance (N.J.), Frank LoBiondo (N.J.), John McHugh (N.Y.), David Reichert (Wash.) and Christopher Smith (N.J.). Forty-four Democrats voted against the bill, making the eight GOP votes all the more crucial.

“This is the biggest job-killing bill that’s ever been on the floor of the House of Representatives. Right here, this bill,” House Minority Leader John Boehner said after the vote. “And I don’t think that’s what the American people want.”

The 1,200-plus-page bill now goes to the Senate, where it faces an uncertain future.

According to The Associated Press, the "cap-and-trade" legislation places the first national limits on emissions of heat-trapping gases from major sources like power plants, refineries and factories. It requires:

An 17 percent cut in greenhouse gas emissions by 2020.

An 83 percent cut in greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

That 20 percent of all electricity in the United States be generated by renewable sources and/or more efficient methods by 2020.

As written, the bill will cost American households an estimated $175 a year by 2020, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

Erick Erickson over at RedState did a great job keeping the pressure on, sending out emails urging folks to contact their reps telling them to vote "no."

Now that Americans may be more aware of the damage this bill could pose, perhaps more will join in to put the pressure on the Senate to defeat this bill.