Obama Opens Floodgates To More Regulation Of How You Live Your Life In The Name Of Climate Change
Ugh…
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. President Barack Obama told the Environmental Protection Agency on Monday to reconsider California’s request to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from cars, reversing the climate policies of former President George W. Bush.
California’s request, which was denied by the Bush administration, would allow it to impose stricter limits on vehicle carbon dioxide emissions, blamed for contributing to the global warming.
If approved, more than 12 states could follow suit in imposing limits that are tougher than federal requirements.
On one hand, giving the states back more regulatory control is a good thing. I am a staunch supporter of federalism, so giving these states more autonomy is something I’m ok with.
On the other hand, I sure am glad that I’m not living in any of these dozen states that are going to up the regulatory burden their citizens must bear. But if anything, I think it’s going to illustrate the basic premise behind our federalist system. States like California are going to raise their regulatory burden, and people will flee those regulations to states without such a high burden.
California, to continue the example, is already hemorrhaging citizens to domestic migration thanks to its high tax, high regulation environment. This is just going to exacerbate that situation.
