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Energy
Greens to Landrieu: Good riddance
POLITICO
Andrew Restuccia
The Louisiana Democrat, a long-time favorite of her state’s oil and gas industry, drew greens’ ire for her die-hard support for expanded offshore drilling, her opposition to EPA climate regulations and her crusade to approve the Keystone XL oil pipeline. So most environmental groups don’t see her loss Saturday to Republican Rep. Bill Cassidy as a setback for their goals — even though Cassidy largely supports the same causes she did and will be part of a GOP Senate majority that vows to thwart President Barack Obama’s climate agenda.
UN climate talks call future of energy majors into question
FINANCIAL TIMES (Subscribe)
Pilita Clark
ExxonMobil and Shell would cease to exist in their current forms in 35 years under measures UN negotiators are considering for a legally binding global climate pact to be sealed in Paris next year.
Fossil-fuel lobbyists, bolstered by GOP wins, work to curb environmental rules
WASHINGTON POST
Tom Hamburger
Oil, gas and coal interests that spent millions to help elect Republicans this year are moving to take advantage of expanded GOP power in Washington and state capitals to thwart Obama administration environmental rules. Industry lobbyists made their pitch in private meetings last week with dozens of state legislators at a summit of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), an industry-financed conservative state policy group.
Watch Out for That Puddle, Soon It Could Be Federally Regulated
WALL STREET JOURNAL
M. Reed Hopper and Todd F. Gaziano
By any fair reading, the proposed rule would federalize virtually all water in the nation, and much of the land, in direct contravention of Supreme Court precedent and express congressional policy in the Clean Water Act “to recognize, preserve, and protect the primary responsibilities and rights of States to prevent, reduce, and eliminate pollution, to plan the development and use . . . of land and water resources.” It is patently unreasonable and should be amended or withdrawn.
Energy Firms in Secretive Alliance With Attorneys General
NEW YORK TIMES
Eric Lipton
Attorneys general in at least a dozen states are working with energy companies and other corporate interests, which in turn are providing them with record amounts of money for their political campaigns, including at least $16 million this year.
Falling Oil Prices Spur New Bets on Global Economic Growth
WALL STREET JOURNAL
Ian Talley
Many of the world’s top policy makers are rewriting their economic forecasts for the U.S., Europe, Japan and elsewhere, betting plummeting oil prices will lead to an overall boost in the global economy by delivering a windfall to consumers and manufacturers. Officials at the International Monetary Fund, U.S. Federal Reserve and European Central Bank have in recent days shrugged off concerns that the tumbling cost of crude signals a global slowdown. Instead, they project cheaper oil will be a shot in the arm for the world economy overall, especially countries with high energy tabs.
White House’s Furman Says Oil-Price Decline Benefits Consumers, Growth
WALL STREET JOURNAL
Damian Paletta
“A reasonable rule of thumb is that for every $8 to $10 the price of oil declines, it adds one-tenth of 1% to gross domestic product growth because we are still net importers of oil,” said Jason Furman, chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers. “So the benefits for consumers outweigh the impact on producers.” Mr. Furman said that “at the current price, I expect the production of oil will continue to increase and the revolution in unconventional drilling in the short run” would continue as well, because “the marginal costs of those wells are very low.”
Oil Trains at Junction in North Dakota
WALL STREET JOURNAL
Chester Dawson
The North Dakota Industrial Commission will meet on Tuesday to complete steps it proposed last month that would require oil companies as of Feb. 1 next year to start removing volatile gaseous compounds before shipping their crude on railroads crisscrossing the country.
The carbon tax canard
WASHINGTON TIMES
Stephen Moore
If Mr. Whitehouse is willing to accept a flat tax on income of say 17 or 18 percent that ends the double tax on saving and investment, then we can talk about a carbon tax. This could be the making of the deal of the century. Liberals get what they want to save the planet. Conservatives get what we want to save the American economy. I doubt this is what Ms. Boxer or Mr. Whitehouse have in mind with their carbon tax scheme. Democrats want a carbon tax to stop fossil fuel production and to raise money for green energy projects like Solyndra. That’s a lose-lose for the economy.
Technology
Obama’s Net Neutrality Bid Divides Civil Rights Groups
NEW YORK TIMES
Edward Wyatt
When President Obama laid out his vision for strict regulation of Internet access last month, he was voicing views thought to be held by many at the most liberal end of the Democratic Party. A few days later, however, the N.A.A.C.P., the National Urban League and the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition sent representatives, including the Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, to tell Tom Wheeler, chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, that they thought Mr. Obama’s call to regulate broadband Internet service as a utility would harm minority communities by stifling investment in underserved areas and entrenching already dominant Internet companies. Their displeasure should not be read as a sign that most civil rights organizations were unhappy with Mr. Obama’s plan, however.
The U.S. Leads the World in Broadband
WALL STREET JOURNAL
Bret Swanson
The U.S., with 4% of the world’s population, has 10% of its Internet users, 25% of its broadband investment and 32% of its consumer Internet traffic. The U.S. policy of Internet freedom has worked. Why does Washington want to intervene in a thriving market?
2016 rivals woo Silicon Valley
THE HILL
Julian Hattem
Contenders for the White House are cozying up to Silicon Valley ahead of the 2016 elections. Potential candidates on the Republican side are cultivating allies in the tech sector at a frenetic pace, making frequent trips to California for fundraising dinners, company tours and bull sessions. With the presidential race expected to be a multi-billion dollar endeavor, the well-heeled executives of the tech world are in high demand — not only for their campaign cash, but also their ability to recruit the high-skilled talent needed for a modern campaign.
No Deadline for the Open Internet
WALL STREET JOURNAL
Gordon Crovitz
The U.S. can renew the Icann agreement for another four years beyond September 2015. That would give everyone the chance to see if there is any way to protect the open Internet without U.S. stewardship. We know for sure that there will be no protection on the schedule set by the Obama administration.
Finance
More tax headaches on the horizon for GOP
THE HILL
Bernie Becker
But Republicans on the Ways and Means Committee are hardly claiming victory, even as they heap the blame on President Obama for scuttling a deal that would have indefinitely extended some of their favored tax incentives for businesses. The House passed its one-year plan on Wednesday and with the Senate expected to take up the deal in the coming days. That’s because dealing with the expired tax breaks, commonly known as extenders, again next year could distract from the committee’s broader goal of overhauling the tax code.
Banks Urge Clients to Take Cash Elsewhere
WALL STREET JOURNAL
Kirsten Grind, James Sterngold and Juliet Chung
Banks are urging some of their largest customers in the U.S. to take their cash elsewhere or be slapped with fees, citing new regulations that make it onerous for them to hold certain deposits. … The change upends one of the cornerstones of banking, in which deposits have been seen as one of the industry’s most attractive forms of funding, said more than a dozen corporate officials, consultants and bank executives interviewed by The Wall Street Journal.
Big Banks May Need More in the Tank
WALL STREET JOURNAL
John Carney
U.S. Federal Reserve governors meet Tuesday to discuss a proposal for a new capital surcharge on the biggest banks. This could crimp their earnings power and future capital returns to shareholders. While details aren’t yet known, Federal Reserve Governor Daniel Tarullo told the Senate Banking Committee in September the rule would be a more stringent version of a surcharge developed by a committee of international regulators. That version ranges from an additional 1% to 3.5% of capital a bank must hold as a percentage of risk-weighted assets, depending on a bank’s systemic importance.
Recovery at Last?
NEW YORK TIMES
Paul Krugman
Just to be clear, I’m not calling the Obama-era economy a success story. We needed faster job growth this time around than under Mr. Bush, because the recession was deeper, and unemployment stayed far too high for far too long. But we can now say with confidence that the recovery’s weakness had nothing to do with Mr. Obama’s (falsely) alleged anti-business slant. What it reflected, instead, was the damage done by government paralysis — paralysis that has, alas, richly rewarded the very politicians who caused it.
Some good ideas for consolidating the recovery — and reviving bipartisanship — in 2015
WASHINGTON POST
Editorial
Republicans already back legislation that would permit Congress to consider proposed free trade pacts with the European Union and 11 Pacific Rim nations on an expedited basis, once Mr. Obama’s team finishes negotiating them. This bill, known as trade promotion authority (TPA), would make it easier for U.S. negotiators to complete the deals because it gives the other nations involved greater assurance that Congress cannot undermine what the president agrees to. Yet until now, Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.), a long-time trade skeptic, has slow-walked TPA.
Politics
The Kochs eclipse the RNC
POLITICO
Mike Allen and Kenneth P. Vogel
The Koch brothers and their allies are pumping tens of millions of dollars into a data company that’s developing detailed, state-of-the-art profiles of 250 million Americans, giving the brothers’ political operation all the earmarks of a national party. … The Koch network also has developed in-house expertise in polling, message-testing, fact-checking, advertising, media buying, dial groups and donor maintenance. Add mastery of election law, a corporate-minded aggressiveness and years of patient experimentation – plus seemingly limitless cash — and the Koch operation actually exceeds the RNC’s data operation in many important respects.
Massive funding bill kicks off 113th Congress’ final chapter
POLITICO
Jake Sherman and John Brenahan
The final chapter this will kick off Monday, when House GOP leaders are expected to unveil their government-funding bill, unofficially dubbed the “cromnibus.” The legislation will keep most of the government open through September 2015 but extend Department of Homeland Security funding only until February. Republicans want to use the shorter DHS funding deadline to pressure President Barack Obama over his recent executive action ending the deportation threat for several million undocumented immigrants.
Cruz’s Power to Disrupt Faces a Fresh Test
WALL STREET JOURNAL
Janet Hook
Last year, Mr. Cruz led the charge in a similar battle over health-care funding that resulted in a government shutdown. This time, with his party poised to become Congress’ governing majority, he’s having a more difficult time getting other Republicans to follow his lead.
Republican Victory in Senate Sets Stage for Antiabortion Push in 2015
WALL STREET JOURNAL
Beth Reinhard
At the top of the agenda: legislation that would ban abortions at 20 weeks of pregnancy or later, pushing the legal boundaries set by the Supreme Court’s Roe v. Wade decision. Activists on both sides of the debate are gearing up for a fight that will demonstrate the consequences of Republican gains in the 2014 election.
Liberals ramp up for state-by-state push in 2016
POLITICO
Jonathan Topaz
Groups supporting marijuana legalization, background checks on firearms and raising the minimum wage told POLITICO to expect a larger slate of ballot propositions in 2016 than during the past several election cycles. In particular, organizations are confident that after achieving success on progressive ballot initiatives with an older and more conservative bloc of voters in 2014, the younger and more liberal electorate expected to turn out in the upcoming presidential contest will produce some major triumphs.
Inside Conservatives’ 7 Million-Strong ‘Digital Army’
NATIONAL JOURNAL
Shane Goldmacher and Tim Alberta
In the last four years, ForAmerica has quietly amassed what it likes to call a “digital army” on Facebook—a force that that now numbers more than 7 million. The group’s spectacular growth can be explained in part by the paid acquisition of its members through targeted advertising. But thanks to a daily stream of savvy and snackable red-meat messaging, these mercenaries have become loyal conservative digital soldiers whose engagement is attracting new recruits. These days, a routine post on ForAmerica’s page reaches more than 2 million people, achieves more than 100,000 “likes,” and has tens of thousands of people repost and comment.
Keeping Score on the Budget
NEW YORK TIMES
Editorial
In coming weeks, Republican leaders will either choose a new director for the C.B.O. or extend the term of the current director, Douglas Elmendorf, an economist and budget expert who has earned the respect and ire of members of both parties for his work on many controversial issues. If they insist on using dynamic scoring for cost estimates, however, they will be hard-pressed to attract or retain top talent — and they will undermine the C.B.O., a rare bastion of nonpartisan analysis in a town that badly needs a neutral scorekeeper.
Jet-setting postal regulator replaced amid scrutiny of travel habits
WASHINGTON POST
Josh Hicks
President Obama replaced the globetrotting chairman of the Postal Regulatory Commission this week after years of criticism over frequent trips she charged to U.S. taxpayers. The PRC confirmed on Friday that Obama tapped commissioner Robert Taub to take the place of Ruth Goldway as head of the panel, serving on an interim basis until the Senate confirms a permanent replacement. The Washington Free Beacon first reported the change on Friday.
