One of the first opportunities facing Rep. Fred Upton, R-Mich., as he takes up the gavel as chairman of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce will be to schedule hearings on the adoption last week by the California Air Resources Board of a Golden State-wide regime of cap-and-trade rules. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger departs Sacramento with approval ratings near the bottom of the barrel and clutching one so-called achievement — this cap-and-trade regime that regulates the emissions of 260 businesses operating 600 facilities. The Terminator leaves a legacy that is, in essence, a script for a very expensive comedy.
The absurdity of a single state attempting to tackle climate control via the imposition of regulations on 600 facilities is wildly amusing. No one can argue that all the effort and all the costs, all the bureaucrats and all the rules will have any impact whatsoever on the climate.
