[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 3 (Tuesday, January 7, 2014)]
[House]
[Page H6]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SAFE CLIMATE CAUCUS
(Mr. WAXMAN asked and was given permission to address the House for 1
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
Mr. WAXMAN. Mr. Speaker, as we begin the second session of the 113th
Congress, Americans all over this country are coming up with their New
Year's resolutions for 2014. In Congress, I propose we make this the
year we stop ignoring climate change.
Last year, CO2 concentrations reached dangerous new
heights in our atmosphere. We suffered through--and paid for--record-
breaking extreme weather events, and we received dire new projections
from international scientific organizations on the threats posed by
climate change.
What did the Republican-led House do? It continued its anti-
environment voting record, voting 109 times in 2013 to weaken
environmental protections. This behavior is reckless and irresponsible.
Despite the gridlock in Congress, the Obama administration has been
making progress. Under the President's leadership, the Nation has
doubled the production of renewable energy like wind and solar,
vehicles are more fuel efficient, and toxic air pollution for power
plants has been cut dramatically.
Let's work with the President this year to build off of these
successes so that, on December 31, we can look with pride that we
finally took action on climate change.
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