With green governments asserting more and more control over energy markets, you need a scorecard to keep track of the players. This week\u2019s green pariah can be next week\u2019s rent-seeking sellout \u2014 if the price is right. Auto companies were once fierce opponents of federal mpg laws. Today, auto execs like Ford CEO Alan Mulally are cheerleaders for the EPA standard. Will the oil industry buckle next?<\/p>\n
Watch Valero Energy Corp, one of the country\u2019s refinery giants.<\/p>\n
Valero is Green Enemy #1 as it rides point against California\u2019s draconian cap-and-trade global-warming law mandating CO2 reduction of 15 percent below current levels by 2020. Cap-and-trade is anathema to Big Oil\u2019s electricity-hungry refineries. So Valero has poured $500,000 into a California ballot initiative that would halt the Governator\u2019s pet law. Valero is also a vocal opponent of federal cap-and-trade laws. . . . <\/p>\n