After Nine Years, Feds Finally Approve Cape Wind Project

The headline tells you all you need to know about the laborious and labyrinthine regulatory process to bring wind power projects to fruition. It's taken the better part of a decade for the project to win federal approval, but that doesn't mean that the project will move forward anytime soon.

The approval of the 130-turbine farm gives a significant boost to the nascent offshore wind industry in the United States, which has lagged far behind Europe and China in harnessing the strong and steady power of ocean breezes to provide electricity to homes and businesses.

With Gov. Deval Patrick standing beside him, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar announced at a news conference at the Massachusetts Statehouse that the government had approved a permit for Cape Wind Associates, a private venture, to build the farm.

“I am approving the Cape Wind project,” Mr. Salazar said. “This will be the first of many projects up and down the Atlantic coast.”

The Cape Wind turbines would lie in Nantucket Sound, about five miles from the nearest shoreline, and cover 24 square miles, roughly the size of Manhattan. The tip of the highest blade of each turbine would reach 440 feet above the water.

But the project is hardly shovel ready. Several regulatory hurdles remain, and opponents have vowed to go to court, potentially stalling Cape Wind for several more years.

The Cape Wind project has been a matter of fierce contention for years, splitting politicians and environmental groups. While some environmentalists are prepared to go to court to stop the project, other major groups, including the Sierra Club and Greenpeace, support it.

NIMBY stands in the way of building these clean power projects, and some environmentalists are still standing by the notion that the project will mar the scenery, harm wildlife, or do other environmental damage. The main reason that these wind power projects are being pushed offshore is because doing so would minimize opposition to wind power turbines located near housing or businesses - NIMBY - yet doing so significantly increases the costs for such projects.

New Jersey has several projects making their way through regulatory hurdles, and one of the key studies looked at siting the wind turbines at various distances from shore - the further out to see, the more support the project got.

We're well past time to pursue these kinds of projects, but they aren't without a downside that isn't entirely apparent at first blush. The turbines require all manner of rare earth elements in significant quantities, and there's a race on to corner the market on finding the mother lode. China has been at the forefront of this race, making it incumbent for researchers to find other deposits around the world that also happen to be in politically stable regions.

The Modern Massachusetts Miracle?

Massachusetts has resoundingly sent a message to Democrats by electing a Republican to the US Senate for the first time since 1972. Republican State Senator Scott Brown won the election in resounding fashion, which would explain why Democrats were already making all manner of excuses even before voters went to the polls. As of this writing, the lead was 52.4 to 46.6 and while Boston broke hard for Coakley, most of the state went for Brown.

Well, pundits and political insiders re going to have plenty of time to spend on recriminations in coming weeks, and Republicans are going to have to figure out what to do with the seat that they've just won.

Democrats are going to have to figure out what to do with their agenda for the next year as they will no longer have a filibuster proof majority. Mind you that Presidents have been able to move their agendas along without such majorities (it's the exception rather than a rule in US politics to have filibuster proof majorities), so President Obama is going to have to take a hard look at his agenda and respond accordingly.

The Democrats are also going to take a hard look at what to do with their health care proposals - whether they're going to try and pass something before Brown can take office, or whether they'll curtail their grandiose proposals to get something passed that might be more acceptable to a wider selection of the public. This most certainly throws a monkey wrench in the Democrats' political agenda.

Republicans are going to have to learn the right lessons from this election - this could be seen as a referendum on the Democrats' agenda nationally, or it could be the result of a poor Democrat candidate running an awful campaign and the Republican campaign ran as good a campaign as one could possibly expect. Republicans can't and shouldn't take anything for granted as far as elections in November are concerned but still build on this election; nothing breeds success like success, but they can't assume that close races will break in their favor unless they run good candidates who run good campaigns.

Massachusetts Goes To The Polls Tomorrow

Massachusetts goes to the poll tomorrow to determine who will fill the seat formerly held by Sen. Ted Kennedy. Democrat Martha Coakley is hoping to retain the seat for Democrats, while Scott Brown has managed to not only hold his advantage but he's managed to take a lead in the final polling before the election tomorrow.

Nate Silver has the Senate race leaning to Brown with just hours to go before the polls open.

The FiveThirtyEight Senate Forecasting Model, which correctly predicted the outcome of all 35 Senate races in 2008, now regards Republican Scott Brown as a 74 percent favorite to win the Senate seat in Massachusetts on the basis of new polling from ARG, Research 2000 and InsiderAdvantage which show worsening numbers for Brown's opponent, Martha Coakley. We have traditionally categorized races in which one side has between a 60 and 80 percent chance of winning as "leaning" toward that candidate, and so that is how we categorize this race now: Lean GOP.

The anger and populist argument isn't sufficient to win over a state like Massachusetts where the state is overwhelming Democrat. Coakley has run an awful campaign and even the last minute trip by President Obama isn't likely to overcome the mess left by the State Democratic party who figured that things would be a cakewalk.

I've read some folks saying that this is a referendum on the health care plan, which would be quite something if the seat held by the former champion of such reform, Ted Kennedy goes to the candidate whose election would thwart a filibuster proof majority in the Senate and increase the chances that a health care deal doesn't get done. In fact, the Congressional Democrats are looking at ways to circumvent that particular outcome to pass health care reform even if Brown wins.

Yet, I think this is all going to boil down to a turnout-related outcome. If the weather cooperates, the Democrats may pull this out yet. If not, then the GOP may get it done.

Native American Tribes Hoping to Thwart Cape Wind Power Project

First, there was former Senator Ted Kennedy who thought that the Cape Wind project would ruin his views and fishing grounds off Cape Code. Now, we've got two Native American tribes lodging protests to prevent the construction of the controversial wind power project.

Known as Cape Wind, the project is the nation’s first planned offshore wind farm and would cover 24 square miles in the sound, an area roughly the size of Manhattan. The park service decision came in response to a request from two Massachusetts Indian tribes, who said the 130 proposed wind turbines would thwart their spiritual ritual of greeting the sunrise, which requires unobstructed views across the sound, and disturb ancestral burial grounds.

The tribes — the Mashpee Wampanoag of Cape Cod and the Aquinnah Wampanoag of Martha’s Vineyard — sought the listing last fall, shortly before a final federal decision on the project was expected. The project has been in the works since 2001 and is strongly supported by Gov. Deval Patrick.

The decision by the National Park Service did not kill the Cape Wind plan, but it erected new hurdles by requiring more negotiations and, possibly, changes to the project, like moving it. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar set a deadline of March 1 for the tribes and the project’s developer, Energy Management Inc., to reach a compromise.

If they do not — a distinct possibility given the acrimony surrounding the project — Mr. Salazar can decide the project’s future himself after seeking suggestions from the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation, an independent group. But even if Mr. Salazar lets the project move forward, the park service finding could help the tribes and opponents build a legal case against it.

Cedric Cromwell, chairman of the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe, said the decision confirmed “what the Wampanoag people have known for thousands of years: that Nantucket Sound has significant archaeological, historic and cultural values and is sacred to our people.”

Others said the finding was surprising because Nantucket Sound, which encompasses more than 500 square miles, is by far the largest body of water ever found eligible for listing on the national historic register. Other eligible bodies of water have included Walden Pond in Massachusetts, which covers about 60 acres, and Zuni Salt Lake in New Mexico, which is about 6,500 feet across, said Jeffrey Olson, a spokesman for the park service.

“The decision is without precedent in terms of implicating many square miles of what is, legally speaking, the high seas,” said Ian A. Bowles, the Massachusetts secretary of energy and environmental affairs. “But as a procedural matter, it’s a good thing a decision was reached, and the secretary is getting personally involved to get it over the finish line.”

A spokeswoman for Mr. Salazar said he planned to meet next week with representatives of the tribes and the developer in hopes of speeding a resolution.

The park service decision comes at a time when Mr. Cromwell’s tribe, which won federal recognition in 2007, is hoping to build a casino.

President Obama has championed wind energy during his first year in office, though he has not publicly taken sides in the Cape Wind battle. In addition to the tribes, the project’s opponents include homeowners and boaters on Cape Cod, who say it would hurt wildlife, fishing and tourism and spoil the beauty of Nantucket Sound. Senator Edward M. Kennedy, whose family compound in Hyannis Port looks out on the proposed wind farm site, was the project’s most powerful opponent until his death last August.

Why exactly has the President been silent on the matter? Simple. Kennedy was one of his staunchest supporters, and Obama's victory in 2008 was a personal victory for Kennedy who saw the liberal wing retake control of the Democratic party over the moderate Clintonite wing. There's no way that Obama was going to undermine efforts by Kennedy in Kennedy's backyard.

If the environmentalists are truly serious about doing something about producing alternative energy sources, this wind power project should get built without further delays. Yet, it appears that politics trumps whatever science says on the matter, and that NIMBY still reigns supreme. The efforts to turn the waters off Cape Cod into a protected sanctuary are little different than California Democrat Sen. Dianne Feinstein's efforts to turn vast swaths of the Mojave Desert into a National Monument to thwart the construction of a bunch of large scale wind and solar power energy facilities.

The Passing of Sen. Edward Kennedy

Sen. Edward Kennedy passed away last night at the age of 77 from the brain cancer that was diagnosed last year. He was the last surviving member of the Kennedy clan that shaped the political landscape of the 1960s. He outlived his two brothers, John and Robert, each of whom was assassinated. My thoughts and prayers go out to his family and friends:

In nearly 50 years in the Senate, Kennedy, a liberal Democrat, served alongside 10 presidents — his brother John Fitzgerald Kennedy among them — compiling an impressive list of legislative achievements on health care, civil rights, education, immigration and more.

His only run for the White House ended in defeat in 1980. More than a quarter-century later, he handed then-Sen. Barack Obama an endorsement at a critical point in the campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination, explicitly likening the young contender to President Kennedy.

To the American public, Kennedy was best known as the last surviving son of America's most glamorous political family, father figure and, memorably, eulogist of an Irish-American clan plagued again and again by tragedy.

Kennedy's death triggered an outpouring of superlatives, from Democrats and Republicans as well as foreign leaders.

"An important chapter in our history has come to an end. Our country has lost a great leader, who picked up the torch of his fallen brothers and became the greatest United States senator of our time," Obama said in a written statement.

"For five decades, virtually every major piece of legislation to advance the civil rights, health and economic well being of the American people bore his name and resulted from his efforts," said Obama, vacationing at Martha's Vineyard off the Massachusetts coast.

Kennedy's family announced his death in a brief statement released early Wednesday.

"We've lost the irreplaceable center of our family and joyous light in our lives, but the inspiration of his faith, optimism, and perseverance will live on in our hearts forever," the statement said. "We thank everyone who gave him care and support over this last year, and everyone who stood with him for so many years in his tireless march for progress toward justice, fairness and opportunity for all."

Reactions to his death were filled with praise and respect from both sides of the aisle for his tenacity and dedication to his causes.

Democrats have already said that they would press ahead with the health care reform, which was one of the issues near and dear to Kennedy as his lasting legacy. It also raises questions in Massachusetts about who will replace him.

In fact, Sen. Kennedy had raised this issue earlier in the week, in what was perhaps a harbinger of things to come. He urged a quick filling of the seat, realizing that the Democrats needed the seat in order to protect against a filibuster that could thwart passage of the health care bill and other items on the Democrats agenda.

However, it wasn't just a quick filling of his seat he was concerned about. He was worried that the GOP might take the seat in the special election held, and therefore wanted to change the law back to what it was before GOPer Mitt Romney became governor; he wanted the governor to select his replacement. The law was changed when Romney became governor so that Democrats could have a better chance of holding on to the seat. Now that a Democrat is the governor, the Democrats figure they're going to have a better chance of holding the seat than if they leave it up to the public to decide.

UPDATE:
Jammie finds the New York Times writing about the rank hypocrisy that the Democrats face if they attempt to switch the law back in order to give them the ability to push ahead with their agenda when they were behind the effort to push for special elections in just this kind of circumstance. Well, the Times didn't point out the rank hypocrisy; only that they need to get this done to move ahead on Obamacare.

It definitely looks like Democrats are going to try and capitalize on his death to attempt to speed passage of Obamacare (H.R. 3200).

On a more personal level, my only connection to the Senator is that he cited one of my law review articles in a paper on hate speech.

I have very few things in common with Kennedy when it comes to matters of politics, but one cannot deny the impact he and his family have had on US politics. Few people can stay on the political stage as long as he has.

UPDATE:
Don Surber has more to say about Kennedy's passing, and is from where I grabbed the photo of the Kennedy brothers. Memeorandum has much more blog reaction to Kennedy's death.

Senator Kennedy Gets A Consolation Prize

Sen. Ted Kennedy never achieved the brass ring of winning the Presidency as his brother John did. Yet, he's served 50 years in the US Senate, so he's getting a consolation prize of having the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the Senate.

It will be located next to his brother's Presidential Library in Dorchester.

Jules Crittenden takes this whole situation to task, considering the overall cost for the project and what that money could better be spent on in the great state of Massachusetts. He also notes that John Kerry has pushed for a $22 million earmark for expanding the JFK Presidential library because of cramped space for Kennedy's papers.

UPDATE:
Instapundit notes that one of every five dollars of the federal pork allocated to Massachusetts in the $410 budget package is going to preserve the Kennedy legacy. It's not like the common man needs their legacies preserved - let alone their current pocketbook.

Boston Mayor Against Affordable Health Care

Why is Mayor Menino against a program that could bring affordable health care to the public? He claims it's because it will put the public in jeopardy. His former health commissioner, who is now the state's public health commissioner, disagrees.

Mayor Thomas M. Menino embarked on a highly public campaign yesterday to block CVS Corp. and other retailers from opening medical clinics inside their stores, an effort that exposed a rift between Menino and the state's public health commissioner, a longtime ally.

Menino blasted state regulators for paving the way Wednesday for the in-store clinics, which are designed to provide treatment for sore throats, poison ivy, and other minor illnesses.

The decision by the state Public Health Council, "jeopardizes patient safety," Menino said in a written statement. "Limited service medical clinics run by merchants in for-profit corporations will seriously compromise quality of care and hygiene. Allowing retailers to make money off of sick people is wrong."

In a separate letter, Menino urged members of the city's Public Health Commission to consider barring the clinics from Boston. CVS executives said they plan to open 25 to 30 MinuteClinics in Greater Boston before the end of the year, although they have not specified how many of those will be within the city's limits.

The Boston Public Health Commission spent nearly an hour discussing the impending arrival of the clinics and ways they could potentially be stopped.

The panel took no action, but instructed the health agency's attorney to investigate whether it could adopt regulations forbidding stores with clinics from selling tobacco products, forcing them to make an untenable financial choice. The city says 31 CVS stores and 56 other pharmacies in Boston have city-issued licenses to sell tobacco.

In a statement issued last night, executives of MinuteClinics said they "would be happy to talk to Mayor Menino about any of his concerns."

"We at MinuteClinic are committed to providing convenient, affordable access to quality health care," the statement said.

By issuing a broadside against the clinics and the state's approval of them, Menino placed himself squarely in opposition to a former longtime deputy, John Auerbach. Before becoming the state's public health commissioner last year, Auerbach spent nine years as executive director of the Boston Public Health Commission.

Auerbach's state agency yesterday released a statement defending its decision on the clincs: "The members of the Public Health Council were deliberative and thoughtful in their review of the limited service clinic regulation. We believe these types of clinics, operated either as part of a retail operation or in a nonprofit setting, can provide the public access to safe, convenient, and quality care for minor health issues."

The clinics are not designed to treat chronic diseases such as cancer or diabetes or serious emergencies. The facilities will be staffed with nurse-practitioners who are trained to spot patients with more severe illnesses or in need of specialized care and send them to a doctor or an emergency room.

The clinics would reduce reliance on emergency rooms and serve a vital need in the community.

It's all about the money - if CVS can turn a profit on these low cost retail operations, then it shows that the government intervention into the health care market may not be necessary after all, which means big trouble for those espousing big government intervention in health care - all of the Democrats running in 2008 have proffered one version or another for government health care.

What is interesting is that the Boston Globe article fails to mention Menino's party affiliation. Why is that? Would that not raise some uncomfortable questions for the 2008 candidates? After all, why is a Democrat against cheap and affordable health care unless he's against retailers providing that service without relying upon the government for handouts?