Moderate Senate Dems build ‘Gang of 16′ to influence cap-and-trade bill

E&E Daily has the story:

Moderate Senate Democrats with close ties to business and organized labor are aiming to take charge of the global warming debate next year.

The “Gang of 16″ represents a critical cross-section of industries and interest groups, including labor, agriculture, coal and manufacturing, setting up an intriguing political dynamic for the next administration and even some of their own party colleagues who typically side with environmental groups. The lawmakers come from the Midwest and Rust Belt and also extend into the Rocky Mountain states…..

Hours after the Senate climate bill was pulled from the floor, 10 of the senators fired off a letter to Boxer and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) outlining their reservations. The group said they would not have supported final passage of the legislation and warned that cap and trade was “perhaps the most significant endeavor undertaken by Congress in over 70 years and must be done with great care.”

Signing the letter were Sens. Debbie Stabenow and Carl Levin of Michigan, John Rockefeller of West Virginia, Blanche Lincoln and Mark Pryor of Arkansas, Jim Webb of Virginia, Evan Bayh of Indiana, Claire McCaskill of Missouri, Sherrod Brown of Ohio and Ben Nelson of Nebraska.

In the four months since the Senate floor debate, staff to another half dozen senators — Jeff Bingaman of New Mexico, Robert Byrd of West Virginia, Kent Conrad and Byron Dorgan of North Dakota, Tim Johnson of South Dakota and Ken Salazar of Colorado — have joined the meetings to get a better grip on global warming policy.

Certainly, this Gang of 16 will be a critical “coalition that must be heard if a cap-and-trade bill can net the 60 votes needed to beat a filibuster.” Some of the demands of this Gang are problematic:

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