My hometown newspaper — rather, the sole remaining one, with the Globe-Democrat’s demise having left the Post-Dispatch, and St. Louisans, worse off for it — feigns confused surprise over Show-Me-Staters petitioning “vocal stalwart” Sen. Kit Bond to oppose costly cap-and-trade legislation.

Note the Post-Dispatch’s typical sneering detachedness, “The argument from Bond and his allies goes something like this: The Midwest, which relies heavily on coal, would suffer a disproportionate burden from the climate-change legislation passed by the House.” Of course, that curious argument from Bond also happens to have been candidate Obama’s express objective for the scheme.

The politics of the move are clear, however: Bond’s Democratic counterpart, Sen. Claire McCaskill, is considered a key swing vote. The stronger Bond’s position, the more difficult for McCaskill to desert her constituents.