Political Climate: Elections Have Consequences; Cap and Trade, RIP

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November 5 Update: Think Progress today reviews the four fossils competing to run the House Energy Committee: Rep. Fred Upton (R-MI), Rep. John Shimkus (R-IL), Rep. Joe "BP" Barton (R-TX), and Rep. Cliff Stearns (R-FL).

November 4 Update: Only half of the Republican freshmen in Congress are overt science deniers. Climate Progress has the scorecard.

ThingsBreak has the rundown on Rep. Ralph Hall (R-TX), who has "staked his claim to the chairmanship of the House Science and Technology Committee."

Original post:
One of the consequences of the election of 2010 is that the average scientific IQ of Congress will be lower by several points. Courtesy of the Union of Concerned Scientists, here are some of the anti-scientific views coming soon to a Congress near you:

"With the possible exception of Tiger Woods, nothing has had a worse year than global warming. We have discovered that a good portion of the science used to justify "climate change" was a hoax perpetrated by leftist ideologues with an agenda."
—Todd Young, new congressperson from Indiana

"I absolutely do not believe that the science of man-caused climate change is proven. Not by any stretch of the imagination. I think it’s far more likely that it’s just sunspot activity or something just in the geologic eons of time where we have changes in the climate." —Ron Johnson, new senator from Wisconsin

"I think we ought to take a look at whatever the group is that measures all this, the IPCC, they don't even believe the crap." —Steve Pearce, new congressperson from New Mexico

"It's a bigger issue, we need to watch 'em. Not only because it may or may not be true, but they're making up their facts to fit their conclusions. They've already caught 'em doing this." —Rand Paul, new senator from Kentucky

"There isn't any real science to say we are altering the climate path of the earth." —Roy Blunt, new senator from Missouri

And, of course, there's that classic from the Speaker-to-be of the House: "The idea that carbon dioxide is a carcinogen that is harmful to our environment is almost comical."

On the other hand, California defeated Proposition 23.

Some other commentary:

GOP plans attacks on the EPA and climate scientists (h/t ThingsBreak)

The Gold Guy finds some silver linings.