Lieberman, McCain Reintroduce Climate Stewardship and Innovation Act
Bill Improvements, Mounting Warming Impacts Attract Co-Sponsors to Bipartisan Measure
WASHINGTON – Senator Joe Lieberman (ID-CT) reintroduced the Climate Stewardship and Innovation Act (S. 280) today with his longstanding ally, Senator John McCain (R-AZ). Co-sponsoring the bill are Senators Barack Obama (D-IL) and Olympia Snowe (R-ME), who had co-sponsored the 2005 version of the bill, and Senators Blanche Lincoln (D-AR) and Susan Collins (R-ME). The most bipartisan of the Senate proposals to reduce greenhouse gas emissions across all major sectors of the US economy, the new bill quickly won endorsements from the National Wildlife Federation, Environmental Defense, and the Pew Center on Global Climate Change.
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“We continue to work with the scientific community, industry, economists, environmentalists, the faith-based community, and other stakeholders to ensure that we are fully addressing the serious problem of global warming in a manner that has both economic and environmental integrity,” said McCain. “I am confident that given our will and what's at stake, America can and must assume its proper leadership role in addressing the preeminent environmental issue of our time, the consequences of which so directly affects our national interests. The costs of inaction are enormous, and the national security concerns related to our inaction cannot be ignored. That is why I will continue working with my colleagues to further improve this legislation to craft and implement a market-based policy that will efficiently combat global warming in a manner that will serve our nation well for many years to come.”
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“With each passing year, the consequences of federal inaction on reducing greenhouse gas emissions become more devastating for our children and grandchildren, and the range of solutions grows smaller,” Obama said. “This bill offers a comprehensive solution that relies on American will, ingenuity, and technological expertise to solve one of the greatest problems of our generation, and it deserves consideration by the Senate as soon as possible.”
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Staggering in its implications.