We need one more vote by tomorrow!

Tomorrow is the big Day! Lets get on the phone early morning and be heard! Thanks, Frank Knight Wed Dec 12, 2007 at 12:20:05 PM PST Rumors are flying that the 2007 Energy Bill will be voted on tomorrow. 59 Senators favor it, meaning we are ONE VOTE away from passing it stopping the GOP filibuster of it. The GOP strategy this year has been clear: Put every possible obstruction in the path of Democratic legislation. When nothing gets done, blame it all on the leadership. Say it enough times until everyone starts to echo it, including the press. And then have the chutzpah to say that the American people are fed up with confrontational politics. We are ONE VOTE away from ending this. We are ONE VOTE away from giving a huge helping hand to the infant solar and wind industries. We are ONE VOTE away from joining with the rest of the world in finally doing something about Global Warming. This Bill has been considerably weakened from even the version passed by the House. The requirement that utilities get 15% of their energy from renewable sources has been dropped. But though much is taken, much remains: *Drastic reduction or elimination of subsidies for oil companies beloved by free-market Republicans. *They will be replaced with expanded, long-lasting solar subsidies. These will be long-lasting-- 8 years for commercial, 6 for residential. (This is crucial.. the number one problem with our current policies is that they are short-term, which discourages investment because businesses can't plan for the long-term.) They will be 30%, and the current $2k to $4k cap will be gone. *Extends for two years existing subsidies for wind, biomass, geothermal, small irrigation hydro,landfill gas, trash combustion facilities. Adds subsidies for tidal. *Tax credits of $3000 to $5000 for plugin hybrids, credits for converting hybrids to plug-in hybrids. Small subsidies for bicycle commuting. *Subsidies for energy efficiency (for homes, businesses, appliances) Its not a perfect bill.. but its a lot better than the Energy Bill of 2005. One solar lobbyist said frankly, this is by far the biggest most important solar bill ever introduced in congress, and is critical to developing a solar future. Couldn’t come at a more important time in terms of the development of the solar industry. We need to do everything we can to spur the renewables industries. And we need to do it NOW. This bill is a small but necessary downpayment.. we need to do it now, not in two years after the next election, not after the arctic ice disappears. The contrast between Republicans and the rest of the world could not be more stark. This week, Britain announced plans to generate half its electricity from offshore wind. Yesterday, Germany announcedthat all new homes built after 1/1/09 will be required to use renewable energy sources to meet 14% of a household's total energy consumption for heating and domestic hot water. The Democrats have been pushing for stronger energy legislation. Republicans stand in the way of progress. Target the GOP I don't know which have flipped. But the following have not. We need one of them. Bob Corker (R-TN) 202 224-3344 John Ensign (R-NV) 202 224-6244 Judd Gregg (R-NH) 202 224-3324 Mel Martinez (R-FL) 202 224-3041 John Sununu (R-NH) 202 224-2841 Hatch (R-UT) (202) 224-5251 Bennet (R-UT) (202) 224-5444 But feel free to call any GOP Senator. If none of these are from your state, you might try a tack I did in 2006. I called up two Senators in nearby states who were facing tough reelection battles. I told the staff member the following, (all of which is true.) I'm not a constituent, so I can't vote for your boss. But there are no close races where I live this year, so I'm trying to decide how to spend my campaign-volunteering time. In the past, I've volunteered in your state. By the way, the Senator's vote on this Bill will heavily influence my decision whether to visit your state for the next election. You're probably in a better position than me to judge how many votes a day of knocking on doors will swing... but I suspect its more than 1. Oh.. sometimes when I campaign in other states, I bring friends. My friends are more excited than ever about the next election If you want to do something about climate change, then call. If you want America to rejoin the community of nations doing something about climate change, then call. If you want to foil the GOP strategy of preventing the Dems from accomplishing anything, then call. If you want to do something about energy security, then call. If you want to put subsidized solar panels on your house, call. DailyKos tries to influence politics on several time-scales: short-term (massive grass-roots pressure on legislation), medium-term (elections) and long-term (building a movement). The three are fully compatible; we can work at any one of these without hurting the cause of the other. This situation is ideally suited for us to have short-term influence. A critical Bill, resting on the knife's edge, and yet attracting relatively little publicity. Let's do what we can to help the Dems to victory on this one.