Remember how Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) in California withdrew from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, citing disagreements with the Chamber’s refusal to take climate change seriously? PG&E has been one of the strongest supporters of solar energy adoption in the country, and supports a carbon cap and other climate change measures included in the Waxman-Markey bill struggling in Congress.

Other Chamber members have withdrawn or voiced apprehension for the same reason, including New Mexico utility PNM and Nike (which resigned from the board today though retained its membership).  The Chamber released a statement yesterday to address this issue: it’s hackles are officially up at all the bad press. The press release insists that the Chamber does support climate change legislation, just not this manifestation:

We oppose the Waxman-Markey bill because it is neither comprehensive nor international, and it falls short on moving renewable and alternative technologies into the marketplace and enabling our transition to a lower carbon future. It would also impose carbon tariffs on goods imported into the United States, a move that would almost certainly spur retaliation from global trading partners.

Tony Kreindler, of the environmental advocacy group Environmental Defense Fund, told Reuters that it seems like the Chamber and other trade groups (notably ACCE) are

…lagging behind where their members actually are and I think what we’re seeing now is companies that have already made up their minds (on climate change) are losing patience…Lots of companies want a bill to get the uncertainty out of the process.

Certainly, no climate change legislation is going to please everyone. But if some of the country’s largest corporations–and the ones who stand to gain or lose the most by such legislation, like utility companies–are supporting current efforts, it seems like trade associations should be shaping themselves to members’ views rather than continuing to politicize internal beliefs.