Carbon fees could work
Recently, the Star has printed editorials embracing a carbon fee with the proceeds returned to the American public. On June 20, CNN’s Fareed Zakaria offered this proposal as a way to mitigate carbon pollution.
We know carbon emissions cause warming. A fee on carbon will cause prices to rise, but the American public can be protected from those rising prices by returning those fees to them.
We know that requiring other countries to pay the same tax on goods they export to the United States will cause those countries to adopt a carbon tax to protect their citizens rather than paying the tax to the citizens of the United States. We have a bill (HR 2307) which would do all these good things and more. Reps. Tom O’Halleran, Ann Kirkpatrick, and Raul Grijalva need to join as co-sponsors and Sens. Kyrsten Sinema and Mark Kelly should offer their support. Once that is done, the market will find ways to reduce carbon emissions. Let’s let it go to work.
Mike Carran
Northwest side
Hoorah for Sinema’s independence
Sen. Kyrsten Sinema did an Op-Ed in the Washington Post reiterating her opposition to ending the long-standing filibuster. She pointed out that Democrats used it last year to block Black Sen. Tim Scott’s (R-S.C.) Police Reform bill. Sinema argued that the filibuster protects the minority party and creates compromise on legislation. And, that future Congresses controlled by Republicans could reverse Democrat legislation and impose their own. Sinema argued that kind of potential extreme back and forth was not good for the country.
As a prior letter writer said, Sinema is channeling some independent-minded John McCain. Pathetic Democrats have and continue to threaten and intimidate Sinema to change her mind, but thus far she is holding firm. They are acting like children throwing a tantrum when not getting their way. The filibuster is not Jim Crow and it is reprehensible that folks like Joe Biden and Barack Obama have injected the race card into this subject. Our founders intended the senate to be more deliberative and the filibuster does that.
Shane Foster
East side
Sen. Sinema doing well
As an independent, centrist voter who has read yet another letter decrying our senior U.S. senator’s support of the filibuster, I feel compelled to write in Sen. Kyrsten Sinema’s support. She seems to me an independent and long-term thinker, which does not equate to being a liar, a hack, or a GOP plant, all things I’ve seen her accused of in recent weeks. I believe her reasoning on the filibuster, laid out in her published op-ed this week, are principled, calculating and impeccably correct.
Sinema won the election to the senate as a compromise-seeking moderate. It seems to me that, unlike so many career politicians, she is practicing just as promised, and her spirit of bipartisan compromise and moderation seems to be just what we need more of in politics today, on both sides of the aisle.
Nickolas Clark
Southeast side
Filibuster prevents bipartisan cooperation
How about this logical reasoning on the filibuster? When policies passed by Democrats are popular with the majority of the American people there won’t be wild swings in policy because people will want to keep the policies that help them! The first one that comes to mind is the Affordable Care Act.
Furthermore, if Republicans try to get rid of popular policies every time they get in, they won’t be elected; this should make them more likely to work with Democrats on legislation. If Sen. Kyrsten Sinema can’t or won’t see this, she isn’t working for her constituents, but rather herself.
America clearly sees what the Republicans are trying to do. We need to get rid of the filibuster now to pass voters’ rights protections, rebuild our infrastructure and so much more. Our senator should be part of the solution, not the problem.
Jan Roberson
Foothills
Welcome, plutocracy!
Tax cuts at a time when the need for investments in education, infrastructure, water, the environment and social welfare is growing tremendously constitutes simply a political crime. No one likes to pay taxes, but responsible adults do it willingly for the improvement of the state. Immature and selfish individuals support tax cuts.
I did not expect anything else from the Republican Legislature, but their brazen and callous approach toward the well-being of our state is still shocking. Welcome, plutocracy; goodbye, democracy. Ultimately, of course, these are the folks who ignore the need to prepare the next generation for the imminent future and pad their own pockets; they are ignorant of the grave dangers to our environment, and rather increase their bank accounts now instead of making responsible decisions that would help all Arizonans.
This is the result of the infantilization of America; the work of an utterly irresponsible me-society; give more to the rich and take from the poor. At the end, all of us will suffer.
Albrecht Classen
Midtown
Discriminatory billing courtesy of Tucson Water
With water, as long as you are paying for what you are using, it logically shouldn’t make a difference in the rate you pay based on location. The infrastructure is already in place. Next we will have Southwest Gas, Tucson Electric Power, Comcast and Cox charging us more be cause of our location and the difficulty of providing service. Hope this obvious money grab by Tucson Water doesn’t give them ideas.
Anthony Gebhardt
Foothills
A matter of principle
So how many times has the headline, byline, any line focused on Sen. Kyrsten Sinema by criticizing, pressuring, or bad-mouthing her regarding her stance on the filibuster? Lost count! Considering the history of her political party on using or removing the filibuster, you have to believe that she’s one of the few politicians in Washington who fully understands how the legislative process was intended to work.
You don’t remove it, you work through it in the spirit of bipartisanship. Somewhat like the 83-day filibuster that led up to the passage of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, which was then signed into law July 2, 1964. The process will not evolve from a commitment of principle without individuals willing to take a stand on principle. The headlines ought to be praising Sinema. Let’s hear it.
Don Weaver
Midtown
