Their answers to a question about what the governor’s role in climate change left me wondering: Several candidates’ main response to the global warming issue was in support of “energy independence” for the U.S. A couple candidates, including Bill Sizemore, announced disbelief  in global warming altogether, and a couple others stated they didn’t believe that it was human-caused. Leading Republican candidate Chris Dudley said he wasn’t sure of the cause, but jumped straight to energy independence. William Ames Cartwright emphasized that “harassing” big government’s environmental regulations main affect is to restrict business and kill jobs. If he were elected governor, he would “help” the loggers and the fishermen.

And to cap it off, Bill Sizemore used his 30-sec rebuttal at the end of the round to say he believed that ”if we lose our freedoms in this country, it’s going to be because of the environmental movement. The environmental movement is a tool that the government uses to actually increase its power and its control over the economy.”

I wonder if there isn’t room in the Oregon Republican party for somebody who wants to preserve Oregon’s environment and recognizes that environmental regulation isn’t accomplished very well by businesses sharing a resource, one who crafts policy in light of the tragedy of the commons effect. Why isn’t there somebody on the Republican side who can challenge the Democrats to refine Oregon’s vision of a sustainable future? Sustainability was a word left out of the KATU debate. I would think that in Oregon, a republican who treats sustainability as a goal would be welcome. Are the Republicans willing to leave all the voters interested in sustainable economics and environmental practices to the Democrats?

Environmental Politics – Moral Environmentalism