Just days after a United Nations panel warned that failure to dramatically and quickly curb the burning of fossil fuels would do “irreversible damage” to the planet, the U.S. electorate on Tuesday voted in a Congress even more committed to the carbon status quo. Controversial projects such as the Keystone XL pipeline enjoy strong backing by the Republican House and Senate leadership. Some newly elected politicians want gas and oil production boosted to turn America into “the next Saudi Arabia,” and have questioned the existence of climate change. Despite a few bright spots, especially at the local level, the election results suggested that — if anything — Washington would become even more resistant than it already has been to legislate action on global warming. “We had some wins, but it was pretty much a bloodbath,” said Wenonah Hauter, the director of national environmental group Food and Water Watch. “I think […]