The Washington Examiner has a good editorial up about some recent puzzling comments made by President Obama.
While promoting his new cap-and-trade energy tax bill, which passed the U.S. House last week, President Obama revealed in a White House address on Monday his model for the nation’s economy – California. “In the late 1970s, the state of California enacted tougher energy-efficiency policies,” Obama said, noting that the state and its residents use less energy today per capita than the national average. “Think about that,” he said, “California producing jobs, their economy keeping pace with the rest of the country and yet they’ve been able to maintain their energy usage in a much lower level than the rest of the country.”
Obama might want to rethink his choice of a model state because it is easy to understand how California has curbed its energy use. Between 2000 and 2007, before the current recession, the state shed nearly 21 percent of its manufacturing jobs, driving down its industrial electrical consumption by 21 percent. California’s industrial users pay electric rates twice as high as their Midwestern counterparts – which helps explain why so much heavy industry has fled the state. In addition to alienating its industry, California has also curbed energy use through exorbitant residential electric rates (50 percent higher than the national average) and massive net out-migration. Between 2005 and 2007, 2.14 million Californians moved to other states, while only 1.44 million people from elsewhere moved to the Golden State, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Don’t be surprised when the 2010 Census finds even more people leaving to escape California’s 11.5 percent unemployment. And, as jobs and residents fled California, its tax revenues have declined, while its politicians went on a spending binge, creating a severe budget crisis.
And I guess if driving industry out of the United States doesn’t bring our electrical use down to Obama-approved levels, we could always institute rolling blackouts. That could be fun! Like doing the wave at a ballgame!
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We in Nevada salute you, oh California, the Golden State. Now get out of Nevada and go somewhere else. The same things are happening here. Californians moving here are the main reason for the huge housing bubble in Las Vegas. We love it when half of LA comes for the weekend and drops their cash. We just don’t like it when they decide to stay. Not being cruel, just realistic.
NV now has some of the highest gasoline prices, electricity rates, natural gas rates, car registration fees, and a pretty healthy dose of politics CA style, than anywhere else this side of the “Mighty Mississip.”
We love it when half of LA comes for the weekend and drops their cash. We just don’t like it when they decide to stay.
See Texans have been saying that kinda thing for years, about everyone. What’s the difference between a Yankee and a damn Yankee? A damn Yankee has a U-Haul.
Can 0 really be that stupid? EVERYONE is talking about how bad things are in CA and he’s holding it up as an example? Ya know I heard right after the Black Death, they had a lot less problem with starvation, lots of food, maybe we should try that.
Tracy, when I was in the Air Force on worldwide mobility, I had my series of “plague” vaccine. I’m good. So, let’s go for it!
Wonder if Gray Davis is laughing up his sleeve…
Fritz,is Nevada being Californicated?
There are times when I feel as used as Ned Beatty.
Somehow I get the feeling that is Obama’s point, what is being described here is exactly what he wants to do.
Nevada has been californicated. It is also where obama wants to take the USA. Flat broke and in dire straits.
And believe me when I say, NV ain’t too happy about it!
Well,Fritz,Dingy Harry is!
Dingy is one of those rare breeds who’re able to revel in the downfall of others. Why else be so gung ho for the socialism that’s been proven to fail literally everytime it’s been tried before?
It’s all about power! Power to the people?…Hell no! It’s power to the powerful. More power, equals more power and the more power the better. It all comes back to that word narcissim.
Does this mean the Feds are going to bail out California?Memo to the sh*theads who run the Golden(!)State?Got a $25 Billion deficit? Raise taxes and/or cut spending…simple as that
Or follow the example of Texas,or my beloved Tennessee:LIVE WITHIN YOUR MEANS!