In today's edition of Meet Your Republican Committee Chairs, we look at Rep. Joe Barton — energy industry puppet, BP apologist. He wants to head the powerful Energy and Commerce committee. Why? To destroy those energy-saving lightbulbs that hippies love.

Barton has reached his term limit as ranking Republican member on the Energy and Commerce committee, but he's trying to build support among his colleagues in order to get a waiver allowing him to stay. He may not get what he wants — he and John Boehner don't really get along. But if he does... well, here you go:

The ranking member on the House Energy and Commerce Committee and one of the men vying to be the next chair of the powerful panel when Republicans take over the House next year, Barton laid out his plan for, essentially, undoing most of what President Obama and Democrats accomplished in the past two years. He laid out the central fronts: the battle to repeal what he calls Obamacare, the fight against the EPA, backing the growing insurgency opposed to net neutrality regulations, taking on "environmental radicalism" and — of course — defending the "traditional, incandescent light bulb" against government regulators who want to replace it with what Barton called "the little, squiggly, pig-tailed ones."

Eh, go ahead. Those things break all the time.

Again, this is a very powerful committee that Joe Barton could realistically be put in charge of. It's amazing. Want more background? Here's a clip of Barton in committee last year thinking he'd stumped the Nobel Laureate energy secretary Steven Chu with his question, "Where does oil come from?" It's a classic. Enjoy.

[Image via AP]