Good morning.

So I just wanted to throw something up about what I am going to be doing this week.

Starting in about 40 minutes is the first of several hearings in the Senate Environment and Public Works committee, dealing the Clean Energy Jobs and American Power Act. The committee is chaired by Barbara Boxer (D-CA), who is also one of the authors of the bill. The ranking member is James Inhofe (R-OK), who more than once has called global warming the "greatest hoax ever perpetrated on the American people". Should be fun huh?

If you want to follow what I will be doing during the hearing, check it out at one of three places ActGreen, Really? Seriously?, or Twitter.

Now, the hearings themselves are not all that important. Senators, especially those opposed, will put on a little show, get their witness heard and pretend like they didn't already know what they are hearing. The testimony of the witnesses has already been submitted and read, so only the answers to the direct questions resemble anything new. It is next week or the week after, when the bill is marked up, that the real show begins. But, if you are interested in "how the sausage is made", check it out.

This is as big as it gets here. The good money is that this bill will be passed out of this committee, the most major that it is in. Seeing this on the floor of the Senate would be a huge step. Seeing it get passed would mean that my time at LCV would be bookended by the passage of the bill in the House for the first time ever, and the same action in the Senate. Pretty cool time to be around.


Some other links to check out:

This is part of a series that you can find here. It is a revealing take on how to prevent the spread of HIV amongst drug users in Washington, DC. More the six percent of the black population here carries it.




Harry Reid is staking a lot on this "opt-out" plan. It is what it sounds like, a public option that states are allowed to opt out of, with the idea being they would do so if they can't afford it. Currently that is just about everybody.

The emotional core of a campaign.

They just really don't wait long to start campaigning for the presidency.

A very interesting study on the advances women have made in our society. Note the authors of the story. Also, note the timing. This comes the day after President Obama came under fire for not having women playing in his basketball games.

Alright, work time. Have a good one.