Weekly Standard doesn't get economics

For the past year, many believed businesses would have to purchase the allowances at an auction, driving up their costs and energy prices for consumers. [Virginia Democrat Rick] Boucher negotiated an agreement that would dramatically reduce these costs by giving away a large percentage of these initial allowances for free.

So says Gary Andres of the Weekly Standard, the only trouble being that it's wrong. The whole point of economic instruments is to drive up the cost of carbon emissions, so either the measure is not going to work or somebody's costs are going to go up. If businesses get allowances for free then consumers are going to be on the hook.