Dems to Obama: Slow Down on Cap-and-Trade

ABC News’ Teddy Davis reports: Eight Senate Democrats have joined 25 Senate Republicans in opposing speedy consideration of President Obama’s cap-and-trade proposal, clouding prospects for the legislation which is the centerpiece of the White House effort to combat global warming. "We oppose using the budget reconciliation process to expedite passage of climate legislation," reads the cap-and-trade letter. "Enactment of a cap-and-trade regime is likely to influence nearly every feature of the U.S. economy. Legislation so far-reaching should be fully vetted and given appropriate time for debate, something the budget reconciliation process does not allow. Using this procedure would circumvent normal Senate practice and would be inconsistent with the Administration’s stated goals of bipartisanship, cooperation, and openness." Read the cap-and-trade letter here. The letter was sent to Sens. Kent Conrad, N.D., and Judd Gregg, N.H., the Democratic chair and top Republican, respectively, on the Senate Budget Committee. The eight Democratic senators who signed the letter are: Robert Byrd, W.Va.; Blanche Lincoln, Ark.; Mary Landrieu, La.; Carl Levin, Mich.; Evan Bayh, Ind.; Ben Nelson, Neb.; Bob Casey Jr., Pa.; and Mark Pryor, Ark. If their advice is followed, cap-and-trade would need 60 votes — rather than a simple majority — to get through the Senate. Under the cap and trade system envisioned by Obama, the government would set a ceiling on carbon emissions and require companies to bid for permits to emit greenhouse gases. The government would gradually lower the amount of credits available. Firms that reduced their emissions below the required level could sell leftover credits to other polluters. The Obama administration acknowledges that a cap-and-trade system would "absolutely" result in higher energy costs to consumers. It has sought to quell those concerns by promising to extend the $400 per year "Making Work Pay" tax credit that most workers received as part of the stimulus package. From 2012 to 2019, Obama’s budget blueprint envisions a cap-and-trade system raising $646 billion. The bulk of that money — $525.7 billion — is supposed to pay for Obama’s "Making Work Pay" tax credit. $120 billion of those cap-and-trade revenues would pay for clean energy technologies. Some cap-and-trade critics worry that the "Making Work Pay" tax credit will not be sufficient to offset the higher costs that residents will face in states where residents get most of their electricity from coal-fired power plants. ABC News’ Ferdous Al-Faruque contributed to this report.