Not 1 GQP Vote For The IRA; Now, 18 Caucus Members Want Johnson To Protect Some Climate/Energy Provisions From Rollback

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No Republican voted for the Inflation Reduction Act two years ago, and conservatives consistently charge that its hundreds of billions of dollars in subsidies for electric vehicles, wind, solar and other technologies will drive up prices, distort the markets and benefit China. But the law is undeniably bringing federal money, private investments and jobs into communities around the country overwhelmingly represented by Republicans — and the once-united opposition is fraying. It’s all part of an intensifying debate within the Republican Party about how to respond to climate change, a rising priority for many young voters. And while more GOP lawmakers say they want to be active on the issue, many conservatives — including Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump — still don’t buy the reality of human-caused global warming and the impact of fossil fuels.

This month, 18 House Republicans signed onto a letter asking Speaker Mike Johnson to spare the energy tax credits from efforts to repeal the Inflation Reduction Act, with many of them seeing the incentives as both good for the planet and extremely beneficial for local economic development. While some Republicans have been suggesting for months they may decide to keep parts of the law, the letter was the first coordinated effort in that direction. “Industries that Republicans have always supported [are] saying, ‘God, I hope we can talk about this before we pull it back,’” said Rep. Andrew Garbarino (R-N.Y.), co-chair of the House’s bipartisan Climate Solutions Caucus, who organized the letter.

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GOP leadership has not yet offered a hint of how it’s reacting to the letter. Taylor Haulsee, a spokesperson for Johnson, said the speaker’s office was “in receipt of the letter” but had no further comment. Johnson has not been publicly engaged on climate issues, in contrast to former Republican Speaker Kevin McCarthy, who worked to create an agenda for the party on the environment and conservation. That agenda included policies like planting more trees and promoting innovation, while fighting Democratic efforts to move away from fossil fuels. Republicans won’t have to make a final decision for another several weeks or months regarding the fate of the tax credits.

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Garbarino said he timed sending the letter with a desire to put down a marker as discussions about a GOP reconciliation bill were intensifying. A Garbarino aide — granted anonymity to share private conversations — later noted that the congressman had “heard from a lot of industry stakeholders that were thrilled with the letter and the opportunity to plead their case.” Democrats are unsurprised. After the event, Podesta told POLITICO’s E&E News: “We’ve seen industries that were against the Inflation Reduction Act now lobbying to keep the tax credits. I’ve done probably three, four appearances with Darren Woods, who extolled the virtues of the Inflation Reduction Act — the CEO of Exxon. So does that have an effect on Capitol Hill? Sure.”

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https://www.eenews.net/articles/republican-fight-over-climate-may-be-reaching-a-boiling-point/