Even after the American Clean Energy and Security Act passed the U.S. House, the Republican Party of Virginia continues to drill Creigh Deeds and Jody Wagner for their refusal to take a position on the bill:“Creigh Deeds is running as the heir-apparent to Tim Kaine,” Mullins said. “The governor has now publicly praised the scheme and five elected representatives of his party voted in favor of it. Deeds has to say where he stands. This is a legitimate question for a guy who wants to follow in Kaine’s footsteps.”So far, the Deeds and Wagner campaigns have responded by ... refusing to answer the question:
"Bob McDonnell might want to inform his National Republican attack dogs that he and Creigh Deeds aren't running for the U.S. Congress," Leopold said. "Creigh Deeds is focused on creating jobs and opportunities across the commonwealth of Virginia, through the powers vested in the governor. Creigh Deeds believes that efforts to protect our environment should keep rates low for consumers and business, encourage investment in new energy technologies, and shouldn't favor one region over another."The attacks have gotten coverage on several newspaper websites and conservative blogs, but progressive blogs haven't touched the issue. (Side note: The line about how energy legislation "shouldn't favor one region over another" is a dog-whistle for "we need to still burn lots of coal.")
Look, Deeds and Wagner saying they supports clean energy while refusing to support clean energy legislation could be smart politics. "There's that radical right-winger Bob McDonnell on one end and that bleeding heart liberal The Green Miles on the other," they can say to undecided voters. "I'm not at either extreme."
But at a time when President Obama is sticking his neck out to get the American Clean Energy and Security Act through Congress, is it really a great move to refuse to stand with him? Aren't you better off taking Rep. Tom Perriello's route and saying, "Agree with me or disagree with me, you know where I stand"?
What do you think? Smart politics or unwise silence?
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Ok, I'm going to go out on a big limb here (or at least, it feels that way.)
ReplyDeleteI'm an eighth generation West Virginian. I don't think I'm being overly dramatic when I say that there is little you can tell me about coal -- the good, the bad, the ugly and the truly evil -- that I don't already know; that I or my family haven't experienced first hand. I'm the author of a novel THE MINER'S DAUGHTER, about the perils of black lung, silicosis, coal camp poverty and environmental destruction.
And yet.
It's hard to explain how complicated the relationship to coal can be in our world. It has defined our culture, our families, our history and our economy. That it often did so negatively or caused personal tragedy does not take away from the power that all culture exerts at who we are as people, no matter what that culture may be. For someone like me, I can be as progressive as the next person, but there will always be a voice inside my head when it comes to coal. It's a black dusty ambivalence I will never fully be able to scrub away. (Indeed, I'm not so sure I want it scrubbed.)
I have never spoken to Deeds or Wagner or any other politician on this subject, so I don't speak for anyone but myself. But perhaps it is like that for them and many others -- I hear the word "coal" and what I see are faces -- faces of people that I love. Not that we don't want clean and efficient energy; not that we don't want a better environment and an economy that isn't dependent upon booms and busts. Not that we don't want jobs that don't rot people's lungs out from the inside. Of course we want all of these things.
But it just isn't simple for us. Or at least, it isn't that easy for me.
Gretchen: Thanks for that fascinating and heartfelt comment, you've definitely given me something to think about/ponder. - Lowell
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