OPINION:
Call it what it is: the “Reelect Vulnerable Democrats Act.”
When Senate Democrats Mark Kelly of Arizona and Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire proposed a temporary tax cut on gasoline last week, they unwittingly highlighted two of the dirtiest secrets of the green agenda. First, every “solution” of the eco-left is a massive tax increase on families. Second, and perhaps more surprisingly, their motivation is less related to the environment and more grounded in politics.
Before going any further, my sincere apologies if you’re reading this with dismay and realizing money you sent to those eco-causes will not actually make a difference for the planet. The left-wing special interest groups in Washington have perfected their grifting machine.
Take a look at the cosponsors of the Kelly-Hassan backtrack tax bill, and you will notice a magical pattern in that all but one of them is up for reelection this November. The single outlier of this worried crew is Sen. Debbie Stabenow of Michigan, who clearly believes the devastating spike of gasoline prices — 40% increase over the last year — will be a political albatross through 2024. Clearly, the gentlelady from Michigan feels she’ll need some sort of defense when she shares a ballot with President Biden in 2024 and has to explain her lockstep support of his agenda.
Much like their Democratic counterparts in governors’ mansions across the country now trying to make us all forget about their draconian COVID-19 lockdowns, this feeble group of six is truly hoping you will forget how they went lockstep down the road to Mr. Biden’s energy failure.
A quick history: All these senators stood quietly while Mr. Biden canceled the Keystone pipeline and shut off domestic energy production on public lands. Each of them voted for his radical eco-nominees like Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, tree-spiking conspirator Tracy Stone-Manning and Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm. That last vote is particularly awkward for these senators as it was for Ms. Granholm, who simply laughed when she was asked about high gas prices. None of these senators stood up for struggling families as Mr. Biden led the way toward the highest inflation in 40 years shouting net zero or nothing.
The clueless energy policies put forth by the Biden administration and this group of vulnerable senators who aided and abetted have definitely brought us closer to net zero, because zero is exactly how much is left in your bank account after paying their inflation tax.
Keep in mind that since their bill would only relieve the federal tax on gasoline through December, this group of six only cares about your family budget for the rest of the year. This magical date just so happens to get each senator past election day when they hope they can quickly rush back to their real constituents in the climate community with the safety of a new six years in Washington under their belt.
In fact, missing from all the buzz about this gas tax holiday is a response from the green agenda’s leader: U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. The backtrack gas stunt was launched close to the third anniversary of Ms. Ocasio-Cortez proclaiming we only have 12 years to do something or the world will come to an end. To be fair to the senators, Ms. Ocasio-Cortez is so worried about her highly scientific timetable that she can barely find the time to party in Florida. However, no one seems to be asking how the gas tax plan would impact her eco-doomsday clock since we only have nine years left.
Thankfully, the “Reelect Vulnerable Democrats” act is being seen for exactly what it is: a desperate, election-year ploy for these senators to try to stay in power. This is just another dirty secret for a movement that prides itself on being clean.
• Larry Behrens is the communications director for Power The Future, a nonprofit advocating for America’s energy workers. You can email him at larry@powerthefuture.com.
