There is nothing like the threat of insolvency and a downgrade to junk bond status to motivate traditionally liberal politicians to abandon the environmentalists who heavily fund their campaigns. Last week Governor Jerry Brown of California tossed one of his core campaign-bundling constituency under-the-bus at a bill-signing event in downtown Los Angeles. As Brown signed his third measure this year that dramatically narrows the “sustainable” crowd’s ability to use litigation to delay or kill capital projects, the governor said it is time for, “big ideas and big projects,” especially ones to “get people working.” With the pace of public insolvencies and Chapter 9 municipal bankruptcy fillings accelerating across the U.S., Brown is the vanguard for high profile progressives willing to bet that capitalism can pull them back from the precipice of disgrace and potential recall. Continue reading
