Jim Inhofe Cap and Trade: Inhofe Senate Has Only 26 Votes

Okay, Jim Inhofe is my senator, as you know. He said over and over that health care was dead on arrival in the Senate...and of course, he was wrong. Today, the good Senator says the Senate has only 26 votes for cap-and-trade which Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) is supporting.

In the video below, Stuart Varney says if all Dems vote for the coming legislation, plus Lindsey Grahamnesty, that is 60 votes - "are you telling me you can beat that?" Twice Inhofe says I know we can beat it. I'm taking it to the bank because Jim Inhofe is far more right than wrong.

Just a few days ago, a report came out from the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, saying that the will not be sent through the usual committee process. Instead Reid will personally work the legislation (probably behind closed doors).

In an effort to keep the bill in Reid's hands, the sponsors -- Sens. John Kerry (D-Mass.), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) won't officially introduce the bill in the Senate when they unveil it to the public next week.
 
"If we introduce it, it'll get referred to committees," Lieberman said. "We want him to be able to work with it and bring it out onto the floor as a leader whenever he's ready."
 
Lieberman said the sponsors plan to reference all of the bill (S. 1462) the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee passed last summer and stressed they have been talking at the staff level with the Finance Committee. Once they roll out the bill, Lieberman said Reid wants all of the relevant Senate committees with a role in the process to take a couple of weeks to outline changes.
 
"We'll unveil a full legislative language bill for discussion, for people to respond to, to see where we are," Kerry said. "It'll be up to the majority leader at that point where he wants to proceed."

Already, some senators also are raising red flags about the committee process, which they warn may be circumvented if the Kerry-Graham-Lieberman proposal moves directly into Reid's office.
 
"These bills need to go through committee," said Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.). "If you're talking about making major deals on energy policy, it needs to go through the Energy Committee. If you're making major deals on tax policy, it needs to go through the Finance Committee. I mean, if you want to get it done."

Cantwell and Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) are pushing an alternative cap-and-dividend bill (S. 2877) that aims to circumvent the creation of a trillion-dollar carbon trading market.

Jim Inhofe and Stuart Varney - Cap-and-Trade (video)


Hat Tip to Hot Air and RedState.