It’s worth devoting a few words to explaining just how neat, swell and peachy keen it is that Henry Waxman has been selected chair of the House Energy Committee. To start with, this was an unorthodox decision on the part of House Democrats. The standard choice is for the committee member who’s been on the committee the longest to be named chair. That Democrats are willing to look beyond standard bureaucratic procedure within their own party bodes well for the next two years in Congress.
Beyond procedure, the choice of Henry Waxman over the old chair, John Dingell, is a matter for substantive celebration. Dingell is a member of Congress from Michigan who is married to a General Motors executive and as someone well known to be in the pocket of the automotive industry has used his power as Energy chairman to scuttle higher fuel efficiency standards and obstruct efforts by members of Congress to even talk about environmental regulation. Henry Waxman, on the other hand, has been the author of legislation to increase regulation of greenhouse gases. John Dingell failed to support legislation to create a clean oceans policy in the last Congress; Henry Waxman actively supported it. Beyond the issue of the environment, Henry Waxman has long advocated for greater transparency and accountability in government. The replacement of an industry stooge at the head of the Energy committee with a citizen-centered environmentalist is a very good sign of Democratic intentions; we should expect to see some serious environmental legislation to address greenhouse gas emissions by industry and by citizens this year.
