Cap and Trade, GM’s Bankruptcy and BPA
Utilities worry about the costs associated with proposed “cap and trade” legislation for greenhouse gases.
General Motors files for bankruptcy.
Manufacturers fight off a proposed ban on an ingredient in plastics called bisphenol A, or BPA.
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1. ENVIRONMENT
Utilities worry about the costs associated with proposed “cap and trade” legislation for greenhouse gases.
CEI Expert Available to Comment: Special Projects Counsel Hans Bader on what this is going to cost the American people:
“In reality, Obama’s proposed ‘cap-and-trade’ tax is likely to raise $2 trillion over the next decade, far more than even [economist Martin] Feldstein anticipates. That’s far more than the $646 billion the Administration earlier estimated — amounting to at least $3,100 per family per year. And that figure may be dwarfed by the amount of money siphoned from consumers to well-connected corporations that have learned how to game “cap-and-trade” schemes.”
2. BUSINESS
General Motors files for bankruptcy.
CEI Expert Available to Comment: Director of the Center for Investors and Entrepreneurs John Berlau on why the GM reorganization plan is a mistake:
“The Administration’s reorganization plan, in which the government owns more than 70 percent of the stock will not serve taxpayers, middle-class investors or ultimately the American auto industry and its workers well. There is no reason why the taxpayer money outlayed to GM – a mistake of both the Bush and Obama administrations – justifies the Obama administration’s demand for such a large ownership stake for the government and the United Auto Workers. The Chrysler bailout of the 1980s, while a troubling precedent for government rescues of industries, was resolved with taxpayers reimbursed without any government ownership stake.”
3. HEALTH
Manufacturers fight off a proposed ban on an ingredient in plastics called bisphenol A, or BPA.
CEI Expert Available to Comment: Director of Risk and Environmental Policy Angela Logomasini on the advantages of using BPA:
“Industry would be wise to focus widely on all the benefits BPA provides for consumers–from packaging to medical devices to safety goggles. Our value-based communications project highlights how businesses can fight back needless and counter-productive legislation by communicating the value their products bring to individuals. Indeed, industry needs to focus on legitimizing its role in society if they are ever going to stay afloat.”
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