Look, let’s not kid ourselves. Not everything Democrats do is wise and just. The reality is, we still live in something of a corporatocracy, and politicians of all stripes are often going to craft policy that favors them. There’s a revolving door from the industries to government.
Welcome through the door, Brad Crabtree.
Perhaps in a sop to Joe Manchin, Crabtree’s nomination signals that tomorrow’s energy policy will still be dictated by polluters. Instead of moving further towards renewables, money will now be directed at the process of carbon capture, which is expensive, and takes up a lot of real estate. And no one knows where to put all the carbon.
To make matters more interesting, Build Back Better is increasing the amount of tax credits a plant can get by capturing. This will result in a nice windfall for the industry. I guess it is a rule that something must be lucrative for it to get done. But it’s not much more than a fancy bribe.
We’re not going to learn until we burn, are we?