The Spectacle Blog
As House Republicans have planned to assume control in January, the biggest debate about chairmanships has been over who will manage the Energy and Commerce Committee, with Rep. Fred Upton of Michigan next in line in seniority. But many conservatives object because of some of his past votes, which included one for a ban on offshore drilling in Florida and the Great Lakes and another in opposition to an extension of the Bush tax cuts on capital gains and dividends. There were others, not the least of which was his cosponsorship of the bill that led to the ban of the incandescent light bulb.
Now, according to the Washington Times, Upton says his mind has been illuminated by those who object to that ban:
“We have heard the grass roots loud and clear, and will have a hearing early next Congress,” said Mr. Upton, a Michigan Republican who is facing several others in his party in a bid to earn the gavel of the powerful committee. “The last thing we wanted to do was infringe upon personal liberties - and this has been a good lesson that Congress does not always know best….”
Mr. Upton and other lawmakers - including the other three men seeking the chairmanship of the Energy and Commerce Committee - now say they’ve learned their lesson and want to unshackle consumers and restore their choice in light bulbs….
Steve Tomaszewski, a spokesman for Rep. John Shimkus of Illinois, another hopeful for the chair, said his boss is aware of the problems with the new bulbs and “has experienced them personally.” He said Mr. Shimkus thinks the committee should look at whether the bulbs are reliable and whether they are as energy-efficient as advertised.
Glad to hear Upton is open-minded, but why it matters to Shimkus how the bulbs do their job is irrelevant. The free market will decide that.
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http://spectator.org/blog/2010/12/07/has-upton-seen-the-light
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dad29 | 12.7.10 @ 11:31AM
Gee!
Upton wants to reconsider forcing citizens to emplace and utilize POISON lightbulbs in the rooms those citizens' CHILDREN use?
What a guy!
Should we all get together and throw him a big "thank you" party? Or should we simply break our poisonous lightbulbs on his lawn?
Maroon.
Eric Cartman| 12.7.10 @ 11:36AM
Humph. They learned their lesson. Humph. Well, I guess millions of people outside your window with pitchforks and nooses (metaphorically speaking) tends to focus one's mind, doesn't it, Senor Upton. Schmuck.
Yosemeti Sam| 12.7.10 @ 12:15PM
Will HR Speaker-to-be (and Third in line of succession, FYI) Boehner SEE the disco light now flashing from this Upton poseur?
PattyMor| 12.7.10 @ 1:34PM
If Upton gets appointed the committee chair, you know that the Republicans are not serious about reforms. It will just continuing the ruling class mentality.
Upton doesn't change, he just changes the message.
Expel "The Ruling Class"!| 12.7.10 @ 2:16PM
Bingo Patty! Those who comprise The Stupid Party never learn their lesson & Rep. Upton will return to his previous message the moment he is seated. And no, The Stupid Party is not serious about real reforms. They enjoy Big Government as much as the Democrats do. Different Party, same crapola.
Penny| 12.7.10 @ 3:18PM
Too late and far too little - he says he'll reconsider the light bulb ban, but with the last US factory having closed a month ago, to what end?
He has no principles and no spine and will only do further damage. RINO, thy name is Upton.
His voting record includes the following:
>Voted AGAINST strengthening missile defense in 2008.
>Voted FOR the Democrat's Mortgage Bailout (Round One).
>Voted FOR permanently raising taxes on businesses while temporarily extending tax credits on “green” initiatives.
>Voted FOR a 700% increase in funding for the HOPE VI
Public Housing Program. This was a program that Bush had marked for elimination.
>Voted AGAINST the Online Freedom of Speech bill, which would have prevented e-mail and blogs from being regulated by the Federal Election Commission.
>Voted FOR spending an additional $100 million on
Public Broadcasting.
>Voted FOR raising minimum wage after the Dems rejected tax cuts that would have protected entry-level workers and small businesses.
>Voted FOR bailing out the auto industry.
>Voted AGAINST banning taxpayer dollars from going to the U.N. to renovate, or build anew, their headquarters in the United States.
>Voted AGAINST a 2006 conservative budget alternative that would have extended Bush’s tax cuts while trimming more than 300 billion dollars of discretionary spending, done away with close to 150 programs, and increased funds for the military and for veterans. It also would have opened ANWR for drilling.
>Voted FOR the Democrat's 2007 Energy Policy that mandated reliance on biofuels while not allowing oil supplies to increase. The policy also stiffened regulations and raised taxes $2 billion.
>Voted FOR Barney Frank’s Housing Trust Fund of 2007
which Speaker Pelosi boasted as “the largest expansion in federal housing programs in decades” and which the Bush administration opposed as “a duplicate program”
that “would create an undue and counterproductive reliance on Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac”.
>Voted AGAINST a 2007 amendment to withhold tax-
payer dollars from Planned Parenthood.
>Voted AGAINST a 2009 amendment to withhold tax-payer dollars from Planned Parenthood.
>Voted FOR the 2009 Omnibus bill that meant an additional 8% increase in spending, on top of the stimulus.
>Voted AGAINST the surge:Had Upton gotten his way, we would have surrendered to Al Qaeda.
>Voted TO OVERRIDE Bush’s 2007 veto of the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP)expansion.
>Voted for a 2009 bill to double SCHIP spending.
Guess when your name is Upton, you live in Michigan and you're part of the Whirlpool Corporation's founding family and wealth, you can afford to vote as you wish in an erstwhile 'safe' RINO seat. Keep this guy as far away as possible from ANY responsible position. And vote him out in 2012.
ALBERT DA CRUZ| 12.9.10 @ 12:48PM
THIS RINO SHOULD NOT BE GIVEN ANY LEADERSHIP ROLL, GIVE THE JOB TO A REAL REPUBLICAN MICHELE BACHMANN