The Climate Change Bill Is Awful—Now Pass It

Waxman-Markey is a "pathetic" and "appalling" bill that totally fails to respond to the urgency of climate change—and it should be passed by the Senate and signed into law straight away, writes Thomas Friedman. For the New York Times columnist, the flawed legislation has one great virtue: it finally puts a price on carbon emissions, and "will usher in a new mind-set among consumers, investors, farmers, innovators and entrepreneurs that in time will make a big difference."

Friedman blames the Republican Party, who under Nixon had impressive environmental credentials, for blindly going "anti-environment just when the country is going green." But President Obama's hands-off approach also let the bill get distorted, and citizens, particularly young Americans, need to "play hardball" and stand up for a price on carbon. "You want to make a difference?" Friedman asks. "Then get out of Facebook and into somebody’s face." (More Waxman-Markey stories.)