I was a GOP governor. I'm joining a lawsuit against Trump's tariffs.
George Allen, a Republican, served as governor of Virginia and represented Virginia in the U.S. Senate.
Some might be surprised that I, a Republican, am challenging President Donald Trump's tariffs plan. But my opposition to tax increases is not new. In fact, that conviction is why I strongly disagree, as a matter of constitutional principle, with the president's 'emergency' declaration to impose near universal import taxes on products from allies and adversaries alike. The Constitution is clear that taxes are the purview of Congress, not a tool to be implemented by presidential proclamation.
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41 minutes ago
Under a hot summer sun, South Carolina's governor says energy law will keep air conditioners humming
COLUMBIA, S.C. -- Under the hot South Carolina summer sun, Republican Gov. Henry McMaster held a ceremonial bill signing for a law he and other supporters said will make sure the rapidly growing state has the energy to run air conditioners and anything else well into the future. McMaster signed the bill into law more than a month ago. But Wednesday's ceremony was a chance to bring utility executives and other workers together with lawmakers to celebrate the promise from supporters that the law will clear the way to meet the power needs of the 1.5 million people the state has added this century — and its fast industrial growth. 'It is hot and promising to get hotter, so we'll be very quick here. This is of course to celebrate a great step for South Carolina,' McMaster said at the ceremony, which lasted less than 15 minutes before most everyone went back into the air-conditioned mansion. The law has immediate impacts. It clears the way for private Dominion Energy and state-owned Santee Cooper to work together on a 2,000-megawatt natural gas plant on the site of a former coal-fired power plant in Colleton County as long as regulators give their OK. Utilities now can appeal decisions from those regulators at the Public Service Commission directly to the South Carolina Supreme Court, meaning projects or rate cases won't be in limbo for years as they wind through the courts. Power companies can now ask for smaller rate increases every year instead of hitting customers with what was sometimes a double-digit increase to cover inflation and rising costs after four or five years. Also in this session, lawmakers cleared the way for cloud computer companies, utilities or others to offer to take over the long-abandoned project to build two new nuclear reactors at the V.C. Summer site near Jenkinsville. Ratepayers paid billions of dollars on the project, which was abandoned in 2017, well before it generated a watt of power. The feasibility of restarting construction or whether a private entity or a utility could get the licenses and permissions that have lapsed has not been determined. The bill didn't get unanimous support. Some Democrats worried consumer protections and energy efficiency efforts were removed. Some Republicans and Democrats worried the state didn't set limits on data centers and that would allow the computer farms to suck up massive amounts of the new energy and raise costs to homeowners and others while providing few local benefits. But Wednesday was a day to celebrate for someone like Dominion Energy South Carolina President Keller Kissam sweating in his suit and tie instead of the short-sleeved polo he would prefer to wear. 'With the heat we experience in South Carolina and you've got to be able to produce 24/7,' Kissam said. 'Our customers expect when they flip a switch or bump the thermostat there's going to be enough electricity.'
New York Post
an hour ago
- New York Post
Keep the focus on stopping Iran's nukes — ‘regime change' is too risky a game
Regime change in Iran may wind up happening as a result of the current conflict, but it's absolutely to be avoided as a goal. In particular, don't let Israel's difficulties in completely destroying Tehran's nuclear program lead to mission creep or any moving of the goalposts — even though the central problem is the ayatollahs who'd have their fingers on the buttons. No civilized human of good will would shed a tear for the Islamic Republic, but Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya have shown the perils of ousting an entire regime without clear, practical ideas for what comes next — and that our ability to steer another country's course is extremely limited. Trying to impose the shah's heir, or any group of exiles, as a new government seems guaranteed to fail, as Washington doesn't know enough (or can't make effective use of what it does know) to pull off some miraculous coup. President Donald Trump certainly won't be sending in US ground troops, nor will any Western nation so intervene; it's hard to see even any of Iran's neighbors taking that risk (though some might aim to bite off some bits of territory). Yet keeping reasonable order in Iran has to be a priority for the rest of the world: It's not only a major oil and gas exporter in its own right, it's positioned to shut off the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the planet's energy now passes. Serious disorder in Iran, such as a civil war, risks destabilizing (among others) Iraq, Turkey and nuclear-armed Pakistan — none of which is completely stable now. Meanwhile, Moscow and (especially) Beijing would be looking to guard their own interests, and spread their influence — more bad news for the West. All of this argues for Washington doing what it can to prevent the conflict from creating a total power vacuum in Tehran. Get opinions and commentary from our columnists Subscribe to our daily Post Opinion newsletter! Thanks for signing up! Enter your email address Please provide a valid email address. By clicking above you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Never miss a story. Check out more newsletters Israel has every right and military need to keep knocking out the regime's missile capabilities, its top generals and so on; eviscerating the Republican Guard is beyond legit — but leaving Iran with enough civic skeleton for some new interim government to rapidly form seems a must. Oddly enough, this is an added argument for Washington joining Israel's campaign as far as dropping those bunker-busters on the Fordow nuke site: Taking out Tehran's nuclear program is the overriding goal here; getting the job finished fast may be the best way to limit the damage to the rest of the country. Yet it's also a reason for Iran's current rulers to give in and give up on their nuclear dreams: The risk they'll be ousted grows every day the bombing continues. Trump's instincts are solid so far: Iran can't go nuclear, but America won't get bogged down in another forever war; Israel's campaign needs to end successfully and rapidly. Regime change must be left to Iran's own people; trying to impose it from outside is a fool's game.
Washington Post
an hour ago
- Washington Post
Eight-foot-tall ‘Dictator Approved' sculpture appears on National Mall
Remember the poop statue? The curly-swirly pile of doo that sat atop a replica of former House speaker Nancy Pelosi's (D-California) desk? The work of protest art placed on the National Mall last October in mock tribute to the Jan. 6 rioters who stormed the U.S. Capitol in an attempt to overturn the 2020 election? Well, the artists responsible for the political poo plop appear to have struck again. This time with a work called 'Dictator Approved,' an 8-foot-tall sculpture showing a gold-painted hand with a distinctive thumbs-up quashing the seafoam green crown of the Statute of Liberty. It sits at the same location on the Mall near Third Street NW as the poop statue did last fall. The artwork's creators intended 'Dictator Approved' as a rejoinder to the June 14 military parade and authoritarianism, according to a permit issued by the National Park Service. The parade, the creators wrote in the application, 'Will feature imagery similar to autocratic, oppressive regime, i.e. N. Korea, Russia, and China, marching through DC.' The purpose of the statue, they continued, is to call attention to 'the praising these types of oppressive leaders have given Donald Trump.' Plaques on the four sides of the artwork's base include quotes from world leaders including Russian President Vladimir Putin ('President Trump is a very bright and talented man.'), Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban ('The most respected, the most feared person is Donald Trump.'), former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro ('We do have a great deal of shared values. I admire President Trump.') and North Korea's Kim Jong Un ('Your Excellency.' A 'special' relationship. 'The extraordinary courage of President Trump.'). 'If these Democrat activists were living in a dictatorship, their eye-sore of a sculpture wouldn't be sitting on the National Mall right now,' Abigail Jackson, a White House spokeswoman, wrote in an emailed statement. 'In the United States of America you have the freedom to display your so-called 'art,' no matter how ugly it is.' Mary Harris is listed as the applicant for the permit but no contact information for her was provided. The permit allows the statue to be in place from 7 a.m. June 16 until 5 p.m. June 22. The 'Dictator Approved' statue is very similar in style and materials to the poop statue and several protest artworks placed in the District, Philadelphia and Portland, Oregon, last fall. However, no individual or group has publicly claimed responsibility for those pieces. An unidentified caller and emailer told a Washington Post reporter last year that he was part of the group that worked on the sculptures and provided information about them that only someone who had installed the projects would know, such as when the statues would appear. His identity remains a mystery. On Wednesday he replied to a Washington Post email asking if he was involved with the new statue. 'I have heard about it but not me,' he wrote. He did not respond to additional questions or a request to meet in an Arlington parking garage. Some of the tourists and locals who stopped by the statue between downpours Wednesday afternoon expressed surprise that it was allowed to be placed where it was. And they expressed reservations about weighing in on it publicly. 'I'm amazed that whoever dreamt this up could put this here,' said Kuresa, an 80-year-old from Australia who declined to give his last name because he said as an international visitor he didn't feel comfortable expressing his views. 'It reminds me of 'Animal Farm.'' District resident and retired federal employee Yvette Hatfield stopped by with her dog Max, wearing an adorable raincoat and rain hat, to get a selfie of both of them in front of the statue. Asked why she wanted a photo, Hatfield laughed. 'Because of my political views and that's all I'm going to say.' 'I actually love it,' said another District resident. He declined to give his name because he said his parents and grandparents often told him 'Fools' names, like their faces, are always seen in public places.' He wished the reporter good luck with the story. Francesca Carlo, 20, and Abigail Martin, 21, visiting from Cleveland, happened on the statue just before it started to pour. 'At first I was confused,' Martin said, 'but then I figured it out. I think it's beautiful.' Carlo agreed. She thought the quotes on the plaques could send a message. 'If all these authoritarian politicians approve of our president then maybe people will see a pattern recognition and see where democracy is headed,' she said.
