McCain's Green Thumb

The Green Revolution is no longer a one-party issue. Today John McCain became the first republican presidential candidate to talk about the environment, global warming, and carbon emmissions. I think that this is long overdue. Regardless of how much of the global warming talk you believe, we can all agree that black skies are a bad things. We don't want to breath it, we don't want to screw up the Earth.

Interestingly enough, McCain and Obama have practically the exact same plan when it comes to the environment.

McCain's plan is available here.
Obama's can be read here.

The fundamental part of both their plans is what's known as a "cap and trade" program. Here's an example:

I own a factory that spews 10 tons of carbon into the air per year.
You own a factory that spews 15 tons of carbon into the air per year.

The government sets a limit of 8 tons per year. My factory is relatively new, so with a few minor adjustments, it now only spews 5 tons of carbon per year. Yours is another story, it is very inefficient, so you can only get it to 11 tons per year.

The new law would allow me to sell you 3 tons of carbon per year. This is a great free market policy, despite what many republicans will say. While it could result in some modest price increases, it is the lowest cost solution to cut down on pollution.

Despite the merits of this plan, it will likely be disastrous for McCain. Conservatives have been looking for any issue to attack him on, to paint him as a liberal maverick. This environmental policy has them drooling at the mouth right now. It will also turn off a lot of the back country republicans, who will see McCain as a traitor. I'm not saying these people will vote for Obama, but I think they may not vote at all.