| Part of Sen. Byrd's legislative style is to play his cards close to the vest. Even on legislation where there is little question how he is likely to vote, Sen. Byrd rarely commits publicly to a position ahead of casting a vote.
Sen. Byrd's Coal Heritage
Sen. Byrd is the son of a coal miner. His wife of 69 years was a coal miner's daughter. For decades, Byrd has been a reliable advocate for the interests of the Appalachian coal industry.
With rare exception (Rep. Boucher (D-VA) comes to mind), Appalachian coal mining politicians are speaking out strongly against ACES and Kerry/Boxer. Coal companies are actively denouncing cap-and-trade and, in some cases, denying man-made global warming.
Yet, Sen. Byrd is no ideologue--he is not a climate change denialist and his voting ratings on environmental issues are good (though not great). Now halfway through his unprecedented ninth consecutive term in the Senate, Byrd is beholden to no corporate interests. Notably, since 2006 Byrd has received more campaign contributions through MoveOn.org ($88,615) than from the mining industry ($58,350).
I think the short-hand pessimism about Byrd voting for an energy and climate change bill is unwarranted. His vote is winnable, a better question is if the cost of winning it is worth it.
Sen. Byrd's Recent Actions
There are four major events this year that provide strong indication of Sen. Byrd moving beyond uncritical support of the coal industry to a role of an "honest broker" to negotiate for coal interests, even if that requires tough love for coal companies.
First, over the summer, a group of Byrd staffer's toured the West Virginia coal fields, including stops with environmentalists to mountaintop removal sites. Byrd was elected to his first office 63 years ago. He didn't need his staff to visit W.Va. coal fields unless it was laying the ground work for a change in his position.
Second, Sen. Byrd released this statement after ACES passed:
I cannot support the House bill in its present form.
I continue to believe that clean coal can be a "green" energy. Those of us who understand coal's great potential in our quest for energy independence must continue to work diligently in shaping a climate bill that will ensure access to affordable energy for West Virginians.
I remain bullish about the future of coal, and am so very proud of the miners who labor and toil in the coalfields of West Virginia.
This critical statement of ACES laid the ground work for...
Third, by building a coalition of Senators with similar interests, Sen. Byrd secured a set of considerations in Kerry / Boxer that aid coal interests. His reaction to Kerry / Boxer was more nuanced:
"I am glad to see that Senators Kerry and Boxer included some of the provisions I and other Senators recommended related to carbon capture and storage. I am pleased that Senators Boxer and Kerry are placing a greater focus on clean coal technology. While this is an encouraging sign, we have a long way to go on this legislation. Many issues have yet to be addressed. There is still a tough road ahead."
"I will continue to work with my colleagues to strike a balance that treats West Virginia's interests fairly as the legislative process moves forward. However, I will actively oppose any bill that would harm the workers, families, industries, or our resource-based economy in West Virginia."
Here Sen. Byrd takes a stance of negotiation and, importantly, gives equal rhetorical billing to workers, families, and industries in West Virginia.
Finally, earlier this month, Sen. Byrd lambasted Don Blankenship's Massey Energy in regards to the elementary school in Marsh Fork (emphasis mine):
"Such arrogance suggests a blatant disregard for the impact of their mining practices on our communities, residents and particularly our children. These are children's lives we are talking about," said Byrd.
"If Massey were not operating near Marsh Fork Elementary, we would not be debating what to do about moving these young students someplace safer. This is not the taxpayers' burden to remedy. This is Massey Energy's responsibility to address."
Byrd added that, "Let me be clear about one thing - this is not about the coal industry or their hard-working coal miners. This is about companies that blatantly disregard human life and safety because of greed. That is never acceptable."
"At a time when coal is under such close scrutiny, coal companies operating in West Virginia should be working together to put their best foot forward. For the sake of the entire coal industry, Massey Energy should strive to be a better and more responsible corporate citizen. And for the sake of the kids, they should address these serious environmental concerns at Marsh Fork Elementary immediately."
Making the statement even more note-worthy, he confirmed this was only one of several expected results from his staff's earlier coal field tour.
In is virtually unprecedented for a W.Va. elected official to say anything negative about a coal company.
What to expect
I think there is a good chance Sen. Byrd will vote for Kerry / Boxer bill as long as the current outline of the bill remains intact and some additional concessions are made for Appalachian coal interests. I don't know what those concessions will be--there is a lot of horse-trading left for the months ahead. I don't see any possibility where Byrd filibusters one of President Barack Obama's signature pieces of legislation.
My fear is a worse-case scenario of even more coal-related development that makes the West Virginia even more dependent on extraction industries. Instead, what we need in Appalachia is a hand up for coal mining communities, not a hand-out for coal mining companies.
To me the best-case scenario is for the inclusion of targeted green development in areas like W.Va. that face significant challenges in the transition from a carbon-based economy. Intensive remediation of inactive and abandoned surface coal mines can lead to an improve local economy, better living conditions, and carbon sinks. Tax credits to bring renewable energy manufacturing facilities to the coal fields will ease the economic transition. We need new jobs for laid of coal miners that are not tied to the occasional boom and mostly bust cycles of Appalachian extraction industries.
Sen. Byrd is actively engaged in this legislative process. To the benefit of us all, Byrd is positioning himself as the rarest of politician, an honest broker for a discredited industry. |
