In yesterday's California Primary, among a number of Ballot Measures, citizens voted on Proposition 16, a proposed constitutional amendment that would prevent any local government from establishing any community choice programs (CCPs) or public power programs without first gaining the support of the public in the form of a 2/3 majority vote.  At first blush this measure appeared to be about how communities purchase electricity, but it went much deeper than that, hitting the core of our democratic values.

What elevated Prop 16 above the merits of its contents to a referendum on corporate power was the fact that this proposed Constitutional amendment protecting PG&E's monopoly in CA energy market, was conceived, proposed and solely funded by PG&E.  PG&E is the largest electricity provider in California and they stand to loose customers to Community Choice Aggregation (CCA) programs like the one that went live last month in Marin County.  They've spent considerable time and energy opposing the Marin County project and others that stand to cut into their customer base.  Rather than fighting these battles over and over with each county or municipality that explores alternatives to their monopoly, they decided to consolidate their efforts in a single Constitutional amendment.

In an address to PG&E shareholders on March 1st of this year, the company's CEO, Peter Darbee, explained that it was more cost effective to make the implementation of a CCA much harder, than to spend millions of dollars fighting each community that tries to break from PG&E :

"So it was really a decision about could we greatly diminish this kind of activity for all going forward rather than spending $10 to $15 million a year of your money to invest in this.  The answer was yes!  The June time frame looked ideal and in the context of what everything that is happening with government today -- the dysfunctionality of it -- we concluded that it was a very ideal time!"

At a time when public confidence in government is at an all time low, PG&E positioned themselves very cleverly.  The core this initiative is about preventing competition and limiting choice for consumers, however, PG&E was able to frame the issue around voter rights.  The way they structured the initiative, they aligned "voter's rights" with a method of systematically protecting their own profits.  The proposition was actually originally titled the "Taxpayer's Right to Vote Act," until the CA Attorney General found this title to be misleading, and renamed the measure to the "New Two-thirds Requirement for Local Public Electricity Providers."  They still argued that Prop 16 was about empowering citizens to  have a say in how their tax dollars are being spent.  Taking this position, they forced opponents into the difficult position of having to explain to voters why they shouldn't have the the right to vote on the such issues.  On top of this, opponents were only able to raise about $100,000 for the "Vote No" campaign, which was dwarfed by the $46 million dollars PG&E put into the "Yes on 16" campaign.

The California Ballot Initiative system was intended to give more power to the people through a more direct democracy, however, with such gross imbalances in funding many feared that it was becoming (if it wasn't already) a pay to play system that would allow large corporations to buy whatever policies they wanted.  Ultimately the people prevailed and Prop 16 failed, however, it's disturbing how close the vote was: 52% to 48%.  It's stories like this, and the recent Supreme Court's Citizens United decision that remind me of something FDR said:

“The liberty of a democracy is not safe if the people tolerate the growth of private power to a point where it comes stronger than their democratic state itself."

Related posts:

1. California Bans Sale of Energy-Guzzling Plasma TVs
2. Schwarzenegger to Block California 33% Renewable Energy Bill
3. Gov. Schwarzenegger Wants to Buy Your Surplus Solar Power

Courtesy of Red, Green, and Blue cartoonist Joe Mohr

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When he had the opportunity, Obama pushed McCain on his support for renewables. Throughout this campaign, Sen. McCain has been claiming to be Mr. Renewable Energy, but the his record says something completely different. I understand that it can be demanding work - being the star in a busy presidential campaign - but when renewable energy tax credits come up for a vote in the Senate, Sen. McCain can't even be bothered to show! And that has been the case even when he is already in town and his vote would be the deciding one.

Read the rest of this post and watch video from the debate at Red, Green, and Blue.

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Now, I couldn't include everyone in my analysis, because McCain's 'shortlist' was anything but. So I omitted a few names, Sarah Palin crossed my mind, but I really didn't think that with all of the GOP rhetoric about Obama's lack of experience, they would go down that road.

So why did McCainpick Palin, is it because my sharp eco-critique of his other choices sent the McCain team running to find someone I didn't cover? Of course it is - or at least I'd like to think as much! To be honest, I say this with my tongue planted firmly against my cheek. But one never really knows the real impact of what one publishes.

Palin's record on the environment will come under scrutiny over the next few months, and some will argue that she is a bad choice for the environment. But whether or not that has a whole lot of traction in the GOP is another story.

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[Cross-posted at Red, Green, and Blue] While in Aspen last week for a fundraiser at the Aspen Institute, Republican Presidential hopeful John McCain met for breakfast with Texas billionaire oil man turned wind energy advocate T. Boone Pickens. The pair chatted for a few minutes in front of cameras, and then they met privately for more than an hour.

The issue of alternative fuels came up for McCain Thursday as well, during a forum at the Aspen Institute. In the past, McCain has said that he opposes tax breaks for wind and solar development because they interfere with the market. Asked about that Thursday, McCain said he has a long record of support for alternative fuels. Asked specifically if he was for renewing tax breaks for wind and solar that expire this year, he surprisingly said, “of course.”

I say surprisingly because in the eight times the Senate has voted on extending the renewable energy production tax credits and the renewable energy investment tax credits in the past year, Senator McCain has been absent each time. As far as I can tell, that is an 0-for-8 record. Not exactly the type of record that could in any way justify Sen. McCain saying that "of course" he supports renewable energy tax credits. In a statement, Pickens said:

"It was a pleasure to sit down with Senator McCain and discuss firsthand an issue that is America's top priority: ending our dependence on foreign oil, which today is approaching 70 percent...

During the meeting I reiterated the urgency of the situation. I told him that any credible domestic energy policy must reduce our foreign dependence on foreign oil by at least 30% in the next 10 years (on top of conservation that is beginning to happen), must utilize proven and available technologies and be 100 percent comprised of American resources...

While I can not speak for the Senator, my sense is that he was interested and encouraged by the work we are doing and recognizes that citizen education and citizen involvement is key to changing course and actually developing a real energy policy with teeth that will help this country from our current disastrous path."

While I appreciate the sentiment of Mr. Pickens and certainly applaud his push, I hope he is correct in his assessment of the Senator. Because extending those tax credits may once again come down to a single vote in the Senate, and there is a very real chance that Senator McCain would once again have an opportunity to vote on those credits. And who knows, maybe he'd even show up to vote.

Related Posts:

• Texas to Build Windpower Superhighway
• McCain Claims to be Mr. Renewable Energy in New Ad - Sierra Club Calls BS
• Let's Try this Again: Senate to Vote on Renewables

Photo: © Mesquite53 | Dreamstime.com

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[Originally published at Red, Green, and Blue] After getting a tour of the design room for the GM prototype battery-powered, Chevy Volt, Sen. John McCain laid out his plan to help the auto industry, including a $5,000 tax credit for people buying low-emission vehicles, a $300-million prize for the company that creates the first commercially available battery-powered car and job retraining programs for displaced workers.

“The eyes of the world are now on the Volt and this will be not only be about the jobs or economy of this great and beautiful state,” McCain said. But the Senator also voiced support for individual states to set tailpipe emission regulations - something that was not exactly well-received at the Warren, Michigan GM facility.

McCain called the Volt a "key, integral and vital part of our ability to eliminate our dependence on foreign oil" and said he "would support tax credits for Americans who choose to buy the Volt and other automobiles that put us on the track to energy independence."

However, McCain will not be receiving any "Man of the Year" plaques in Michigan any time soon. The presumptive Republican Presidential nominee also told the audience of more than 500 GM workers that he would let each state determine its own fuel efficiency standards. A position that is very unpopular with American car manufacturers because they say it could spell their demise.

Faced with high gas prices and a weak economy, GM's sales fell 16% for the first half of the year, with trucks off 21% and cars down nearly 9%. GM has lost billions of dollars during the last three years.

Other Posts on John McCain, EV Tax Credits, and the Chevy Volt:

• "McCain Proposes $300 Million Prize to Developer of Super Battery"
• Who Might Win McCain’s Battery Competition? Part I: Firefly : Gas 2.0
• "McCain Calls for More Offshore Drilling - What Else Would He Say in Houston?"
• "An Electric Vehicle You Can Buy Today: The The $20,000 TRIAC EV"
• "Chevy Volt's Lithium-Ion Batteries Road Tested by Month's End"

Photo Credits: 1. soggydan via flickr under a Creative Commons License; 2. General Motors

Sources: Detroit Free Press

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Wait, what?

The ad then goes on to flash the iconic images of wind turbines and John McCain at some sort of manufacturing plant and the narrator says: "Renewable energy to transform our economy, create jobs and energy independence. That's John McCain."

Now you understand why I was dumbfounded, right? Here, watch it for yourself. [more]

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Perhaps the most cringeworthy portion of the advertisement is when the commercial's narrator asks, "Who can you thank for rising prices at the pump?", while a picture of Barack Obama flashes on the screen and the familiar "Obama-Obama-Obama" chants fill the background audio. Running a close second in cringeworthiness is the second portion of the ad, where we are apparently supposed to see the light that is candidate McCain...

...but I don't want to spoil the whole thing for you. Watch it for yourself:

Related Posts:

• “McCain Calls for More Offshore Drilling - What Else Would He Say in Houston?”
• “Bush Lifts Ban on Offshore Drilling: Why it Matters and Why it Doesn’t”
• "Should President Bush Be Telling Americans to Conserve Gas?"

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read more | digg story

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