News Bits – 4/11/06

Arnold Schwarzenegger came out in support of a bill to reduce emissions in the state by 25% in 2020. Great legislation, great call by Arnold. I know I support any Democrat over him, but he is one of my favorite Republicans. A Democrat in the Governors office (could happen this November) would mean more liberal legislation can be approved, more stringent environmental legislation, and equal marriage rights (I only read environmental news from Cali, I don’t know any other specifics).

The federal government, through Environmental Protection Agency administrator Stephen Johnson, warned China about its environmental record. Ironic, considering all the EPA has done under the Bush administration has resisted environmental standards and tried to roll back previous protections (not at all protecting anything but business). There is no argument though that China has a dirtier environment than ours (not per capita, but they are just getting going on clean energy), but perhaps the EU should be making this statement.

In a close election, Silvio Berlusconi has been voted out of office, and replaced with Romano Prodi. Berlusconi was a conservative billionaire, and staunch ally of Bush and the war in Iraq. Prodi is a center-left politician, and will move to end the war for Italians. If this happens, it will highlight the dwindling support, and hopefully help us get out. The election though was so close, with Prodi winning by .1%. New election rules give a huge boost to the winning party in the lower house though, so this .1% win is magnified, although parliament will still be close. The close election caused Berlusconi to refuse to concede until all checks are completed.