Why Rome isn't burning, Caesar Obama fiddles and calls people who don't agree with him "believers that moon is made of cheese..."
http://www.afr.com/p/national/swift_...uUKrrpkml19h0J
The carbon price will be dead within days as the government uses its new Senate support to circumvent delaying tactics by Labor and the Greens, and bring a swift end to the policy.
But the government’s joy at eradicating the carbon price and the mining tax, also set to fall this week, is likely to be short-lived. The new Senate is as hostile as its predecessor to about $25 billion in tax increases and spending cuts contained in the budget.
“They’re in more shit than a *Werribee duck,” said one Senate source who asked not to be identified.
The situation grew slightly worse when new senators David Leyonhjelm and Bob Day said they would back Labor, the Greens and Clive Palmer in stopping the government from axing the last of the tax cuts that were designed as carbon tax compensation, a move worth about $1.5 billion over four years. Senator Leyonhjelm said he and Senator Day supported lower taxes no matter how small this break was.
The government has brushed aside a flood of last-ditch appeals from industry, economists and climate groups to maintain some semblance of a carbon price mechanism, and expects to *eradicate the policy by Tuesday.
The government, which needs six extra votes when defied by Labor and the Greens, has the support of all eight Senate crossbenchers, including the Palmer United Party’ three votes. On Sunday night, Environment Minister Greg Hunt and Mr Palmer were scheduled to sign off on Mr Palmer’s legislative amendment that would ensure the price reductions from reduced energy costs are passed back to consumers.
