SC’s Graham: Energy, warming policies go together
CHARLESTON, S.C. — U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., drawing fire from energy industry group after saying he would seek bipartisan consensus on energy and global warming, said Friday reducing pollution and energy independence go together.
The lawmaker told reporters he wants a bill to do both.
An energy industry group, the American Energy Alliance, started running radio ads in the state this week criticizing Graham’s position on cap and trade carbon taxes. The ads say that approach will cost jobs.
Under cap and trade, emission credits could be bought by companies who don’t want to pay for equipment to reduce carbon dioxide emissions.
In a recent article in The New York Times written with U.S. Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., the lawmakers said they would seek consensus.
“A legitimate bipartisan effort can put America back in the lead again,” they wrote.
“Global climate change is not a religion to me but I do believe carbon pollution is harmful to the environment and I want to find a way to fix that problem,” Graham said Friday.
“But it’s got to be good business. None of the bills in the House or the Senate right now are good business. They would really hurt manufacturing and they would hurt rate payers,” he said.
He said offshore drilling can be done in an environmentally responsible way and envisions allowing new nuclear plants and investing in clean coal technology to make use of the nation’s 250-year stockpile of coal.
But he said some sort of emissions regulations are needed too.
“If you don’t control carbon people are going to keep building coal-fired plants,” he said. “You have to make carbon emissions such that it’s worth your time to invest in wind solar and nuclear. I think carbon controls can be reasonably had without disrupting our economy.”
Graham said it’s better that Congress act, noting that two years ago, the Supreme Court ruled the Environmental Protection Agency can regulate carbon emissions.
“So you’re looking at unelected bureaucrats controlling our economy rather than members of Congress,” he said. “We need a bill. We need a reasonable regulatory bill.”
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