Clinton Urges Action on Climate Bill

The following is crossposted from Rethink

At the Senate Democrats' weekly caucus lunch on Tuesday, former President Bill Clinton reminded lawmakers the need for a climate bill in the U.S. remains a high priority for the 2010. Politico notes that Clinton "aimed his remarks at moderate Democrats who fear taking up another controversial bill in the midst of an economic recession and just months before the midterm elections."  After Senators Kerry and Boxer introduced Clean Energy Jobs and American Power Act to the Senate in the fall of '09, the bill stalled and has since taken a backseat to other issues like the jobs recovery and health care bills.  However, Clinton's remarks help to bring a second life to the push to pass an energy bill in 2010. After the luncheon, Clinton told reporters Kerry is “trying to give us an energy plan that will create lots of jobs and improve our national security and I basically went there and said I agree with him."

In addition,  Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) stated Clinton "warned lawmakers about the danger of the U.S. falling behind China in the global race to dominate the clean-energy market." A national energy bill that provides sufficient funding for the research and development of cutting edge technologies and establishes a market for the commercialization of clean technologies will not only help the United States lead in renewable energy production, but it will offer companies and institutions across the country the tools to establish sustainable green jobs to bring products, tools, and ideas to the market that harness the U.S.'s renewable energy potential.  Kerry, Boxer, and Lieberman's efforts to introduce a bill by Easter are a step in the right direction toward ensuring the future success of clean technology development in the U.S.   It is crucial that government supports not only the funding for research and development, but also demonstration-scale testing and commercialization efforts so that new clean energy technologies can effectively move out of the lab and into full-scale production.  Only then can we begin to build the next generation of low-carbon energy infrastructure.