Statement On Global Warming

Michael Briggs

WASHINGTON - AUGUST 2 -Senator Bernie Sanders called a blueprint for legislation on global warming laid out today by Senators Joseph Lieberman and John Warner a positive step, but Sanders said the peril to our planet from greenhouse gas emissions calls for a more aggressive approach to stop climate change.

"I commend Senator Lieberman and Senator Warner for their hard work in putting together legislation that our subcommittee will consider. There is no doubt that we need bipartisan support in the United States Senate to address the most significant environmental threat our planet has ever seen.

"Given the dimensions of the crisis, however, I strongly believe that we must act aggressively to halt and then reverse global warming. I am concerned that the outline my colleagues put out today, which is a good starting point, does not go far enough. As good as it is, I hope we can do better. As a member of the subcommittee, I look forward to working with them."

Sanders and Senator Barbara Boxer, chairman of the full Environment and Public Works Committee, are the lead sponsors of the comprehensive Global Warming Pollution Reduction Act, which calls for reducing emissions by 80 percent below 1990 levels by 2050.

"The people of the United States want strong action, and the Senate must follow. In my view, we can, in fact, break our dependency on fossil fuels, substantially lower greenhouse gas emissions, move to sustainable energy and, in the process, create millions of good paying jobs. Those are the principles that I will fight for."