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It was smackdown on Capitol Hill today with Al Gore testifying before Congress on climate change. Al Gore received quite a few contentious questions from several Congressmen about a possible kickback that he will be receiving from one of his clients. Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) was one of the Congressmen who questioned Gore on the kickback, and here is the video:

Blackburn was right to grill Gore for where this money will be headed. Gore does not care about the well being of American people, especially since he is a big supporter of cap and trade policy. With cap and trade proposals, there is no doubt that more regulations will be placed on businesses, in addition to posing an economic threat for both low and middle income families. American families will be spending more on gas, food, and heating fuel. The Wall Street Journal reports about the damaging effects this policy will have on many families and businesses in America. Here are the real effects of cap and trade, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The Congressional Budget Office — Mr. Orszag’s former roost — estimates that the price hikes from a 15% cut in emissions would cost the average household in the bottom-income quintile about 3.3% of its after-tax income every year. That’s about $680, not including the costs of reduced employment and output. The three middle quintiles would see their paychecks cut between $880 and $1,500, or 2.9% to 2.7% of income. The rich would pay 1.7%. Cap and trade is the ideal policy for every Beltway analyst who thinks the tax code is too progressive (all five of them).

But the greatest inequities are geographic and would be imposed on the parts of the U.S. that rely most on manufacturing or fossil fuels — particularly coal, which generates most power in the Midwest, Southern and Plains states. It’s no coincidence that the liberals most invested in cap and trade — Barbara Boxer, Henry Waxman, Ed Markey — come from California or the Northeast.

Coal provides more than half of U.S. electricity, and 25 states get more than 50% of their electricity from conventional coal-fired generation. In Ohio, it totals 86%, according to the Energy Information Administration. Ratepayers in Indiana (94%), Missouri (85%), New Mexico (80%), Pennsylvania (56%), West Virginia (98%) and Wyoming (95%) are going to get soaked.

Wouldn’t this tell one that Obama’s policies to improve the environment will only intensify the damage to the economy? We already know that Obama’s environmental policies are destroying prosperity.