Green Jobs, Eminent Domain and New Oil Refineries

A new report by unions and environmental groups predicts a rosy future for “green collar” jobs.

The American Civil Liberties Union campaigns against reform of eminent domain abuse.

South Dakota voters green-light the construction of the first new oil refinery in the U.S. since 1976.

1. ENVIRONMENT

A new report by unions and environmental groups predicts a rosy future for “green collar” jobs.

CEI Expert Available to Comment: Senior Fellow Iain Murray on the lack of substance in the report:

“…presumably this report will detail exactly where those jobs will come from and how many in each state. It could even, if it’s going to be intellectually honest, detail the net cost of the environmental-industrial complex, once all the old ‘polluting’ industries are shut down. Well, all the report does is identify what jobs will be needed to build the green economy (South Park’s ‘build a better tomorrow’ song may spring to mind), quantify how many people are currently occupied in each of those professions, and then say, ‘obviously, we’ll need more of them.’ That’s it.”

 

2. LEGAL

The American Civil Liberties Union campaigns against reform of eminent domain abuse.

CEI Expert Available to Comment: Special Projects CounselHans Bader on the left-wing bias of the ACLU:

“The ACLU claims to exist to protect the civil liberties and constitutional rights of all Americans, but it’s really just an unprincipled left-wing lobbying group. Recently, the ACLU of Southern California opposed Proposition 98, a California initiative that would have reinforced state constitutional protections against seizures of private property, by preventing private property from being taken for commercial development, and ending rent control. The ACLU attacked Prop. 98 for seeking to “eliminate rent control,” and “restricting the government’s power.” Imagine that! Restricting the government’s power! That’s what most civil liberties guarantees do, after all: restrict government power. But the American Civil Liberties Union doesn’t have much to do with civil liberties, anymore, unless the beneficiaries are left-wing constituencies, like alleged terrorists.”

 

3. ENERGY

South Dakota voters green-light the construction of the first new oil refinery in the U.S. since 1976.

CEI Expert Available to Comment: Director of Energy Policy Myron Ebell on the need to strengthen the nation’s energy infrastructure:

“…our aging and inadequate energy infrastructure is stretched to the limit and any disruptions will therefore cause major problems. The American people should support long-term policies that will encourage the rebuilding and expansion of America’s energy supply system. This is the opposite of the policies advocated by many environmental groups over the past three decades to restrict energy use, raise energy prices, and block access to energy resources.”

 

Blog feature: For more news and analysis, updated throughout the day, visit CEI’s blog, Open Market.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

To contact a CEI expert for comment or interviews, please call the CEI communications department at 202-331-2273 or email to [email protected].