Senate Democrats push for climate bill ahead of Copenhagen
Suzanne Goldenberg
The Guardian
October 28, 2009
[efoods]The epic confrontation about how America will power the economy of the future formally got underway today amid stark warnings from the Obama administration of the costs of inaction on energy reform.
Today’s hearing, the first of three blockbuster sessions in the Senate, marks a last heave by administration officials and Democratic leaders to advance a bill to reduce America’s greenhouse gas emissions before an international climate change meeting at Copenhagen, now just six weeks away.
They were met with strong opposition from a powerful Democrat as well as Republicans on the environment and public works committee.
With the clock running down to Copenhagen, the administration wheeled out four top officials to make the case that failure to act now on climate change would relegate America to lower tier status in the global economy. “When the starting gun sounded on the clean energy race, the United States stumbled,” Steven Chu, the energy secretary, told the environment and public works committee. “If we don’t choose to begin the development of this new technology, China and other countries will.”
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