Sens. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) and Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) hosted a press conference in a park outside the Capitol this afternoon to rally support for the Climate Security Act. Standing on a podium alongside other senators as well as reps from several green groups, religious organizations, labor unions, and businesses, Boxer called the bill “long overdue.”
Lieberman noted that climate change is “another one of those challenges where the people are way ahead of the politicians.” He continued, “This is the energy-security and energy-independence bill that everybody has been asking us to pass.”
They were joined by Sens. John Kerry (D-Mass.), Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), and Olymbia Snowe (R-Maine), plus folks from the Natural Resources Defense Council, National Wildlife Federation, and League of Conservation Voters. There were also representatives from the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, Catholic Coalition on Climate Change, and some of the labor unions that have come out in support of the bill. Many in the crowd wore shirts demanding “Climate Action NOW!” Others held signs reading “Yes to Green Jobs” and “Do it 4 the Musk Ox!”
The event was intended to showcase the variety of supporters the bill has attracted, including religious leaders and anglers and hunters — groups not traditionally associated with political action on environmental concerns.
Klobuchar said that during a trip back to Minnesota last week, she attended a forum on climate where concerned citizens included snowmobilers and hunters. “The people are seeing this first, and Washington has to listen,” she said.
Snowe noted that she first voted in favor of legislation on climate change in 1988 — that’s 20 years ago, for those counting. “We can’t afford to wait any longer,” she said. “We have the momentum.”
