Senator Empirical

THERE’S a question Republican senator Bob Corker likes to ask at town meetings when he is home in Tennessee. “I ask people to raise their hands if they know anything about ‘cap and trade.’ I’m lucky if I get a hand go up,” he says. “But this is going to affect people hugely in their daily lives.”

The Senate is scheduled to debate a “cap and trade” bill in June. It would fight global warming by setting a limit on the emission of greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide. That’s the cap. Companies that got their emissions below their limit would be able to sell the excess emission rights to other companies. That’s the trade.

About the Author

Ramesh Ponnuru

Ramesh Ponnuru is the editor of National Review, a columnist for the Washington Post, and a fellow at the American Enterprise Institute.

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THERE’S a question Republican senator Bob Corker likes to ask at town meetings when he is home in Tennessee. “I ask people to raise their hands if they know anything about ‘cap and trade.’ I’m lucky if I get a hand go up,” he says. “But this is going to affect people hugely in their daily lives.”

The Senate is scheduled to debate a “cap and trade” bill in June. It would fight global warming by setting a limit on the emission of greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide. That’s the cap. Companies that got their emissions below their limit would be able to sell the excess emission rights to other companies. That’s the trade.