Withdraw from Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative to ‘Get (Stuff) Done’
“Not since the days of Andrew Carnegie has there been as much economic power in one Pittsburgh room as there will be at Carnegie Mellon University . . . never has there been as much economic opportunity for southwestern Pennsylvania on a single day . . .” – Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
“Shapiro’s social media machine is fueled by a staff that has nearly doubled in size since his predecessor, Governor Tom Wolf, left office. Counting his communications, press, web, and social media staffers, 21 employees are dedicated to promoting Shapiro’s image, touting his achievements, and communicating his views as governor.” – Philadelphia Inquirer
In what could be described as a modern adaptation of the Charles Dickens phrase “It was the best of times it was the worst of times,” these two recent news reports succinctly sum up the difference between U.S. Senator Dave McCormick and Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro.
Even before he made his maiden speech on the floor of the U.S. Senate, McCormick pulled off one of the biggest economic coups in state, if not national history. His Energy and Innovation Summit attracted the most influential movers and shakers of the tech and energy industries, four cabinet secretaries and, most notably, the President of the United States.
The summit generated an eye-popping $92 billion – billion with a “b” – in pledged new investment in Pennsylvania’s energy and technology sectors. It has brought economic opportunity not only to southwestern Pennsylvania, but to all corners of Penn’s woods.
Just as weeks earlier President Donald Trump demonstrated how to “get (stuff) done” by sealing a game-changing deal between U.S. Steel and Japan’s Nippon Steel, McCormick eschewed rhetoric and instead produced results. That is the type of economic leadership that had been lacking in both our state and nation – but no longer. As a result, literally thousands – perhaps tens of thousands – of new, family sustaining jobs will be created in the steel, tech, energy and associated industries.
Meanwhile, under the sort of green Capitol dome in Harrisburg Governor Josh Shapiro has been doing what he does best – self-promotion. As the Inquirer reported Shapiro has built a bloated staff whose sole mission is to burnish his image.
Despite the out-sized communications crew the Shapiro Administration has become one of the least transparent in state history. More information came from William Penn’s quill than we are getting from Shapiro’s tech team. As Megan Martin of the Commonwealth Foundation has pointed out Shapiro has refused to make public his daily calendar, blocked efforts to reveal why his office spent $350,000 on private law firms, and hidden details of his use of state transportation to travel to sporting events.
He has also stonewalled providing information on his administration’s handling of a sexual harassment scandal involving his former Secretary of Legislative Affairs. E-mails relative to the situation have been wiped from state servers while Shapiro dodges accountability.
Shapiro likes to say he “gets (stuff) done.” Aside from self-promotion there is little evidence of stuff getting done. Witness the fact the state budget is now a month past due with little apparent effort by the governor himself to move the process along.
McCormick was gracious enough to include Governor Shapiro in his Energy and Innovation Summit. In his comments Shapiro sounded all the right notes as always eloquently appealing to both the tech giants and pro-growth audience.
He pledged to be a partner in progress. But will his actions at long last match his words? Here is one way Shapiro can demonstrate his commitment to energy and technology development in Pennsylvania: remove the state from the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative or RGGI.
RGGI is a multi-state compact which essentially would impose a carbon tax on energy producers. RGGI is the sword of Damocles hanging over the head of energy development. State lawmakers have challenged the constitutionality of RGGI correctly arguing that it is a tax and only the legislature has the power to enact a tax. The state Commonwealth Court agreed. But Shapiro has appealed the ruling to the state Supreme Court.
Pending resolution of the issue investment in energy infrastructure has virtually ceased. If Governor Shapiro truly wants to unleash the power of Pennsylvania’s energy potential he would withdraw his legal challenge and remove the state from the RGGI compact. Otherwise, he puts a roadblock on McCormick’s road to economic prosperity making it difficult for the private sector to get stuff done.
But get stuff done they will. If past behavior is any predictor when they do Shapiro will point at himself and crow like the rooster taking credit for the sun rise.
(Lowman S. Henry is Chairman & CEO of the Lincoln Institute and host of the weekly Lincoln Radio Journal and American Radio Journal. His e-mail address is lhenry@lincolninstitute.org.)
Permission to reprint is granted provided author and affiliation are cited.
