43 members as of this morning-- Debbie Mucarsel-Powell (FL), Stephen Lynch (MA) and Lloyd Doggett (TX) being the most recent Earlier in the week, Alexander Kaufman reported for HuffPo that "The Green New Deal is the most popular policy hardly anyone has heard of... the sweeping proposal to generate 100 percent of the nation’s electricity from clean sources within the next 10 years, upgrade the United States’ power grid, invest in energy-efficiency and renewable technology, and provide training for jobs in the new, green economy. But when asked 'how much do you support or oppose' the aforementioned suite of policies, 81% of registered voters say they either 'somewhat support' or 'strongly support' the plan, according to new survey results shared exclusively with HuffPost from the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication and George Mason University. 92% of Democrats supported the idea, including 93 percent of liberal Democrats and 90 percent of moderate-to-conservative Democrats. But 64 percent of Republicans-- including 75% of moderate-to-liberal Republicans and 57% of conservative Republicans-- also backed the policy goals outlined in the Green New Deal. 88% of independents endorsed the policies as well."So wouldn't that kind of bipartisan policy be a perfect tool for Democrats to reach out to independent and even Republican voters? It's not really going that way yet. So far, of the 40 members of Congress who have signed onto the proposal, just 3 represent swing districts. Most represent deep blue districts like Alexandria Ocasio's and Rashida Tlaib's, two of the freshmen who have been pushing it the hardest. Th exceptions who do represent swing districts and who realize this is a good solid bipartisan issue:
• Mike Levin (D-CA)- R+1• Chris Pappas (D-NH)- R+2• Ann Kuster (D-NH)- D+2
CA-48 is one of those swing districts (R+4). It is also one of the most environmentally-conscious districts in the country, taking up much of the Orange County coastline, from Seal Beach, through Huntington Beach, Costa Mesa, Newport Beach and Laguna Beach to Three Arch Bay. Harley Rouda, a New Dem who campaigned largely on progressive issues, had a pitch-perfect plank about climate change on his campaign website.
Protecting the Environment, Propelling the EconomyThe 48th Congressional District is one of the most remarkable places to live in the world. However, as Republican leaders in Washington continue to deny the threat of man-made climate change, the pristine natural beauty which makes our home district so special is under attack. I will work to protect California’s most precious asset, our beautiful coastlines, from offshore drilling. We need to focus on consistently choosing clean energy over the fossil fuels of the past.As a businessman, I know firsthand that protecting the environment and incentivizing economic growth are not mutually exclusive goals, and that is why I support making Southern California the clean tech capital of the world. Clean energy innovation is not only better for the environment, but it also creates high paying jobs, economic growth, prosperity, energy choice and freedom from foreign dependence. And there is no better place in the world to unleash America’s clean energy potential than Southern California. We have all the ingredients: one of the best places in the world to live that attracts talented workers from around the globe; over 300 days of sunshine; a well-developed infrastructure; some of the world’s leading universities; an innovative culture; forward thinking municipalities; access to capital; and numerous high-tech businesses.
Democrat Josh Harder also displaced a Republican incumbent in a tough swing district (PVI is exactly even). Harder also had a forward-looking Climate Change position during the campaign. "I strongly believe in the scientific consensus that climate change is real and man-made," states his campaign website. "I will fight back against the Trump Administration’s dangerous attempts to undermine the Environmental Protection Agency and undo international agreements on climate change. Instead, we must make sure there are adequate incentives to invest in clean energy sources and move away from polluting fossil fuels."Like 6 of the 7 California freshmen-- Mike Levin being the exception-- Neither Rouda nor Harder has signed onto the Green New Deal proposal yet. (Rouda didn't respond to an open-ended request for a statement. Nor did Katie Hill or Katie Porter.)California has 53 members of Congress. In January, 46 of them will be Democrats. The only California Democrats who have been actively hostile towards climate change amelioration are Blue Dog Jim Costa and New Dem Scott Peters. So that leaves 44. Instead only 8 Califonrians have signed on to the Green New Deal: Jared Huffman, Barbara Lee, Jacjie Speier, Ro Khanna, Judy Chu, Ted Lieu, Mark Takano and Mike Levin. I'm surprised that strong progressives like Mark DeSaulnier, Alan Lowenthal, Jimmy Gomez, Karen Bass, Lucille Roybal-Allard and Maxine Waters haven't come on board yet. Nor have Linda Sanchez, Grace Napolitano, Doris Matsui nor, even Nanette Barragán, who was first elected on a powerful climate change and environmental platform and whose record fighting against Big Oil is stronger than almost anyone in Congress. I doubt the more conservative and corporate Democrats from California-- like Adam Schiff, Mike Thompson, Susan Davis, Anna Eshoo, Brad Sherman, Eric Swalwell, John Garamendi, Tony Cardenas, who is rumored to be whipping against the proposal, Julia Brownley, Ami Bera, Norma Torres, Pete Aguilar, Raul Ruiz or Jimmy Panetta will even consider getting on board until the liberals have.Why does it matter if more members sign on or not? Hoyer is been quite hostile towards the concept of a Select Committee to deal with the Green New Deal issues and Pelosi, who is generally supportive, says she can't move forward in a meaningful way without much more support from her caucus. The committee chairs, particularly corrupt New Jersey machine hack Frank Pallone (Energy and Commerce Committee), have been whining that a select committee will take away power from them (power, meaning the ability to collect bribes from effected special interests). Unless, those 40 members are doubled or tripled, we're going to wind up with a committee with no power at all and an existential issue like Climate Change in the hands of a pay-for-play crook like Frank Pallone.UPDATE: Betrayal On #GreenNewDeal?Last Tuesday, we mentioned that there are only 3 members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee who do not use their positions on that honey-pot of bribery to raise campaign cash: John Sarbanes (D-MD), Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) and Cathy Castor (D-FL). The corrupt sleazebag chairman, Frank Pallone (D-NJ), for example, has accepted $135,689 from Oil and Gas interests while serving on the committee tasked with writing legislation impacting their business. The outgoing GOP chairman and vice-chairman, Greg Walden (R-OR) and Joe Barton (R-TX) have taken, respectively $781,400 and $2,167,987, while Fred Upton, chair of the committee's Energy subcommittee has taken $1,078,150. And the 3 ethical members of the committee? People who work in the sector have made lifelong contributions that have amounted to:
• Cathy Castor- $2,951• Jan Schakowsky- $5,030• John Sarbanes -$28,353
Thursday E&E News reported that Democratic House leaders have tapped Castor to lead the new committee on Climate Change.
Castor said the news wasn't "official quite yet"-- as the parameters of the committee still were under discussion-- but she said one of the goals should be to "raise the profile of what America should be doing to address the climate crisis."In taking the job, the six-term lawmaker would be walking into a delicate situation.For weeks, establishment figures and environmental activists have feuded over the scope of the committee, which Pelosi endorsed during a protest at her office just a week after Democrats took control of the House in the midterm election.The protesters, led by the Sunrise Movement, want the committee to focus on crafting a "Green New Deal"-- their vision of a massive climate-friendly jobs program.An ally of the group, Rep-elect Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), also has called for membership of the committee to be limited to lawmakers who don't accept campaign contributions from the fossil fuel industry.Asked about the committee's mission, Castor said the Green New Deal would be a component of its responsibility but not its only objective."I think they have some terrific ideas," she said of the Green New Deal advocates. "But that's not going to be our sole focus."Castor also indicated that interested members would not be disqualified from serving on the committee if they take money from the fossil fuel industry. "I don't think you can do that under the First Amendment, really," she said.The Florida lawmaker did note, however, that there should be transparency about where members get their campaign contributions. "Whether it's this committee or any other committee," she said. "Are you on Energy and Commerce and taking a lot of money from Big Pharma? People should know about that."Most recently, Democrats have debated whether the panel should have subpoena power. House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-MD) said yesterday he believed it should not-- a contrast to the last climate change committee, led by then-Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA), which was granted subpoena authority when Democrats last controlled the House)."I don't know that they think they need subpoena power," Hoyer said. "They are going to have [climate] experts who are, I think, dying to come before them."That led to a backlash from activists, including those with the Sunrise Movement. "Whip Hoyer is standing in the way of a plan that huge majorities of Americans support," said spokeswoman Varshini Prakash.Turf battles are driving a lot of the internal Democratic feud. Veterans such as Rep. Frank Pallone (D-NJ), who is in line to lead the Energy and Commerce Committee, have fought against the committee's revival. Pallone said earlier that he didn't "think it's necessary."Castor said she hoped to "develop a joint plan of action" with the other committees to tackle climate change. "I've already talked with incoming Chairman Pallone about coordinating our efforts," she said. "We have a moral obligation to our kids and our grandkids to address this and do it aggressively."Rep. Jared Huffman (D-CA), a backer of the Green New Deal, said this morning Castor would be a "terrific" choice for the job."I think she brings a lot of thoughtfulness to the position, and she's experienced, so I can't disagree with that," Huffman said.Rep. Paul Tonko (D-NY) added that he's had a "good partnership" working with Castor on drinking water and brownfields issues on the Energy and Commerce Committee.That relationship will likely have to continue. Tonko is currently in line to chair the E&C Environment Subcommittee, where he's likely to take up climate issues in the next Congress.Tonko was originally among the critics of the select committee proposal, but he told E&E News this morning the debate in the caucus has been "pretty well-settled.""Any outreach we can do-- any encouragement to bring people into the discussion and the dialogue so that we can advance sound, thoughtful, science-based, evidence-based outcomes-- we will do," Tonko said.Rep. Scott Peters (D-CA), also on Energy and Commerce, said Castor is well-versed in environmental and climate issues. "She's from Florida," he said. "She has some personal experience with severe weather."Peters said he himself was not seeking to be on the select panel. He laughed when asked whether a turf fight between Energy and Commerce and the select committee had been resolved, saying, "I am sure it hasn't. I think it will play out over time."Many Democratic lawmakers say the panel could be a landing place for many of the freshmen members who have said they'd like to be on Energy and Commerce.Typically, it takes a few terms for a lawmaker to land a seat on E&C, but in the interim the select panel could offer them a chance to weigh in on issues like the New Green Deal.
Just for a hoot, this is how much others mentioned in this piece have taken from Gas and Oil interests, which in recent years have only given significantly to Republicans and a tiny handful of Democrats they feel are especially corruptible (like Hoyer). It should help you assess their comments:• Steny Hoyer- $404,970• Scott Peters- $47,103• Paul Tonko- $42,625• Jared Huffman- $18,000Sunrise's position is that until they see a clear statement from Pelosi that the prospect of creating a Select Committee on a Green New Deal is over, they will continue building support both from the public and among the Democratic caucus. They reached out to her office for clarification on the mandate of her proposed committee. As for Blue America... we are looking for a primary opponent for NJ-06-- Middlesex and northern Monmouth counties (Woodbridge, Edison, Carteret, South Plainfield, Piscataway, Metuchen, New Brunswick, Perth Amboy, Sayreville, Marlboro, Hazlet, Longbranch).