I am very pleased to have generated a lot of debate on the topic of energy policy, through
all my recent diaries, and others like those by
johnnygunn,
goinsouth ,
Lupin or
Silent Lurker (and presumably others that I missed).
A lot of that debate focused on gas taxes, because I highlighted that issue voluntarily, and, in some diaries, provocatively. These diaries were extremely successful to ferret out the issues that trigger the strongest reactions. If even on a liberal site like dKos I get called out as a clueless, arrogant French elitist who should go back to worrying about what's happening in the suburbs of my city, one can imagine what can happen when "real Americans" hear about this plan.
So let me get back to Energize America, now, and to the politics of this proposal.
Let's make a few thing as clear as possible:
- Energize America is not about a gas tax.
It's a comprehensive plan, touching on a large number of energy-related issues. It is presented as a whole, and makes sense only as a whole. It includes a number of things that have been brought forward as alternatives to the gas tax by many of you in the threads (windfall tax, support for alternative energy, incentives to poor households and rural population, support for higher MPG cars, etc...). So, if we discuss concrete policy proposals, let's discuss what's actually in Energize America in its entirety. The existing version can be found here (Energize America - A Blueprint for U.S. Energy Security (Fourth Draft)), and a new updated version will come out in a few days.
- Energize America does include a gas tax
As currently drafted, Energize America does include a gas tax - as well as a windfall profit tax. Before you scream that I am trying to strangle the poor in America and bringing political suicide to the Democrats, here are a few facts:
a) we are talking about tax increases of 1cent/gallon per month, which will bring an added cost per average American driver of $40 each year. Forty dollars of tax increases per year per driver.
b) together with the windfall tax, that Energy Security Investment Funding will be used exclusively to pay for the other proposals in Energize America that will help Americans save on their energy consumption. These proposals include subsidies (up to $6,000 - six thousand dollars)) to buy new, high MPG cars, subsidies for energy saving home improvements, and specific revenue transfers to the poorest and the rural population, along with support for renewable energy and other measures.
We are talking about a plan that is financially balanced, provides the right kinds of incentives, has direct, immediately visible benefits (lower fuel consumption for many, direct aid to invest or to alleviate the increased cost of gasoline) and will have a net positive impact for the poorest Americans and those that make the effort to lower their energy consumption.
As part of a comprehensive plan, it asks for the right kind of effort from everybody: reasonable in amount, shared by all, but not penalising the weakest members of society, encouraging the best energy-saving behavior, while leaving Americans free to choose their way of life - and as part of a global strategic plan to ensure energy security for the country in the middle term.
- Energize America will fly only if it is supported by kossacks
The reason I have posted all these diaries in recent days is that I know perfectly well that the gas tax is going to be the item that everybody focuses on, because it triggers so many hot buttons for Americans, as amply demonstrated by the comments in all the threads linked to above.
Energize America, for the time being, makes the bet that honesty and responsibility can be successful in politics, and we think that it provides a great opportunity for Democrats to show that they (i) have a plan, (ii) have a spine, (iii) fight for the common good, and (iv) actually stand for something, without fear and without shame.
A gas tax is the only sensible way to finance the full programme. The windfall profits tax may sound excellent, but it's going to be extremely hard to actually put into law, and even harder to enforce; cutting all exisitng subsidies sounds good but will need to be pushed against extremely powerful lobbies. The gas tax provides the right signal that Energize America requires the effort of everybody, and creates the simplest incentive to do the most important thing, i.e. consume less oil in the form of gasoline, while being as painless as possible for the weakest members of society. It signals that energy is really a vital issue for all Americans, and that there is no "magic bullet" solution.
Together with the rest of Energize America, it's honest, it's fair and, it actually has a chance of working.
If you guys tell us that this is a dangerous, or worse, hopeless, proposal, we will, with a heavy heart, bin it. If you think that a comprehensive, coherent plan like Energize America cannot be defended and cannot be used as a platform to get elected, we will have to accept the judgement of the community, because the plan can only have a chance to make an impact with politicians if the full weight of the dailyKos community is behind it.
So what I would like to get from the community in the coming days, is smart input on how to improve the plan and make it as politically palatable as possible, including, among many other things, a gas tax. Energize America has been built from the start on the basis of input from all kossacks, and it will continue to work that way. The community as a whole has better knowledge of the conditions of various categories of population; it knows various technologies to support better than any individual can; it can guide us in the process of getting this plan look better, sound better, and actually be saleable.
Meteor Blades will post the next version of the plan, and various other kossacks will post other diaries on various aspects of Energize America in the coming days so that everything can be put on the table.
Let's build this plan together, own it collectively, and sell it together - or not.