A CHALLENGE TO THE ENERGY/CLIMATE BILL

House Climate Bill Called "immoral" by Major Civil Rights Leader
24 June 2009 (Big Sky Business Journal)

"The Waxman-Markey climate bill is "an immoral assault on poor Americans" because it is designed to purposely raise the cost of energy in order to force the working poor to reduce their standard of living, according to one of the nation's leading civil rights champions.

"Roy Innis, Chairman of the Congress of Racial Equality -- one of America's oldest civil rights organizations -- made the allegation in a letter to all members of Congress…CORE has been heavily engaged in the national energy policy debate since the publication of Innis' 2007 book, "Energy Keepers, Energy Killers." The book was a Washington Post non-fiction best seller."

Innis is a climate change denier and doesn't understand the potential of New Energy but he raises an important question...(click to enlarge)

[Roy Innis, Chairman, Congress of Racial Equality:] "In my 40-plus years as the Chairman of CORE, I have seen few federal bills that would do more harm to America’s working class and low-income citizens and families than the Waxman-Markey climate tax bill…"

[Roy Innis, Chairman, Congress of Racial Equality:] "The Waxman-Markey bill is designed specifically to make the use of fossil fuels more costly…That will have a disproportionate and negative impact on those who now benefit most from the affordable and reliable power that fossil fuels provide: poor and working-class families."

...THIS is a very important question. (click to answer)

[Roy Innis, Chairman, Congress of Racial Equality:] "In fact, an underlying goal of this legislation is the morally repugnant concept that constricting sources of domestic energy and raising energy costs is a good thing because it will force conservation by consumers…That elitist view assumes that poor, working class families have the ability to bear that 'social cost.'"

[Roy Innis, Chairman, Congress of Racial Equality:] "The plain truth is this: the poor and working families we represent cannot bear that luxury…Americans don’t want 'energy welfare' payments from the government to help ease the sting of these government-driven cost increases…They want continued affordable and reliable energy, which this bill will constrict…This is an explicitly anti-consumer package that will have huge impacts – both direct and indirect – on the struggling families we represent."

"CORE said it plans to launch a national public education campaign against the Waxman-Markey legislation. CORE has more than 100,000 members nationwide."