FRANK LAUTENBERG
QUESTION 5 RESPONSE
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It is an embarrassment to our nation that President Bush has stood so isolated in the world in questioning the urgency of combating global warming. That is more proof why, this November, we must embrace a change from the failed policies of the last eight years. In the next few years, we will negotiate the next version of the Kyoto treaty. I will support those efforts to work with the international community to create a strong framework to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Global warming is real, it's happening now and it's the most serious environmental threat we face. Its impact continues to grow and it poses risks to countries across the globe, including a serious national security risk to the United States.

However, beyond the Kyoto treaty, the United States must assert its traditional role as a leader on global issues and must not wait for the rest of the world to act. The problem is too severe to simply wait.

We must take the lead in drafting a new international global warming treaty that recognizes the different abilities of different countries to make reductions in greenhouse gas emissions.

Domestically, I support a mandatory cap on greenhouse gas emissions. In fact, the best science tells us we need to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions by 80% by 2050 in order to avert some of the more serious impacts of a warming world. To provide flexibility to businesses, a cap-and-trade system, which has been used effectively to fight other environmental problems, is a valuable tool.

As a member of the Senate’s Environment and Public Works committee, I was very active when the Senate took up a comprehensive global warming bill. I fought at every stage in the legislative process strengthen the bill to the point where it would get the job done. My work on this bill included increasing the reductions of emissions that were mandatory under the bill, making polluters, instead of taxpayers, pay for their emissions and making sure the caps would be changed if the science showed that we needed greater action. Unfortunately, as has happened too many times this Congress, a minority of Senators and a non-supportive White House filibustered the bill and prevented an actual vote.

However, in addition to caps on greenhouse gas emissions, there are numerous other efforts I have been engaged in to combat global warming.

For instance, over the objections of lobbyists, we in Congress recently passed -- and the President signed -- a bill that will increase the fuel economy of our cars by 10 miles per gallon over the next 10 years. I was a strong supporter of this bill, as fuel economy standards had not been increased in decades, and was proud to cosponsor and vote for it. Improving the fuel economy of our vehicles reduces the greenhouse gas emissions from the use of gasoline. In a shrill partisan attack, my opponent criticized my votes in support of this bill, despite the fact it was widely hailed as a step forward in the fight against global warming.

I have also been a staunch supporter of Amtrak, which takes cars off the road and is approximately 20% more energy efficient. If we can get more rail lines, and more high speed trains servicing more routes, we will not only reduce congestion on the roads, but will reduce our greenhouse gas emissions significantly. I wrote the bill to revamp our rail system and over the objections of many Republicans, our bill has passed the House and the Senate and is awaiting final agreement.

I also wrote a Green Buildings law that requires the federal government to lead, when it comes to constructing their buildings to an environmentally friendly code. This has a major impact on our greenhouse gas emissions, as the electricity used by buildings is responsible for nearly 40% of our nation’s greenhouse gas emissions. The federal government is the largest landlord in the country and its leadership will highlight the affordable green technology that exists and will reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

We must also create real incentives for the development of renewable resources such as wind and solar energy, both of which do not emit any greenhouse gas emissions. New Jersey, for instance, has the second most solar installations of any state in the country due to its good tax incentives for renewable energy. I am a co-sponsor of a measure to extend tax credits for these key energies. Unfortunately, this bill is being filibustered by my Republican colleagues in the Senate. We need to do all we can to incentivize renewable energy, which is why I pushed to make sure that some of the proceeds of any global warming cap and trade bill will go to these industries to reduce the cost of installation.

My opponent has spent the last few years in Washington as a lobbyist for a giant oil drilling company. He lobbied so the oil company could continue to skirt paying its fair share of taxes by incorporating in an off-shore tax haven. Not only that, while he was in Congress my opponent was the top recipient of polluter PAC campaign contributions in New Jersey. In Congress, my opponent was often on the side of polluters and even voted to cut the Environmental Protection Agency’s budget by one-third. It is hard to imagine my opponent as a force for change on the environment and a cleaner, greener future with his failed record of supporting special interests and the status quo.

Global warming is the most serious environmental threat our planet faces and we need real leadership to combat it. There are numerous special interests, each with an army of lobbyists, aiming to protect the status quo. I was proud to receive the endorsements of the League of Conservation Voters and the Sierra Club and, as Senator, will continue my work taking global warming head on to bring a clean energy future to the United States.