In the wake of Hurricane Sandy, New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg used the tragic storm to frame his rather predictable endorsement of President Obama, using the specious argument that global warming had caused the storm to explain his high hopes that the president would tackle carbon emissions and climate change. He wrote:
One sees climate change as an urgent problem that threatens our planet; one does not. I want our president to place scientific evidence and risk management above electoral politics.
The column was entitled, “A Vote for a President to Lead on Climate Change.”
How’s that working out? Well, as the debate about tax reform and the fiscal cliff heats up, and there are proposals floating around for a politically costly but likely effective carbon tax, the Obama administration suggested that . . . Republicans are welcome to propose it. A deputy assistant Treasury secretary said on Tuesday at an event in D.C., “If this is going to be an issue that is part of discussions, there will have to be some interest shown by Republicans if we are going to make any progress.”
Now, today Jay Carney made it quite clear that the president himself agrees. Carney adamantly declared in a press briefing today: “We would never propose a carbon tax, and have no intention of proposing one.”
Heckuva bet, Bloomie.