[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 4 (Wednesday, January 8, 2014)]
[House]
[Pages H28-H29]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         CLIMATE CHANGE DENIERS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Oregon (Mr. DeFazio) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. DeFAZIO. Mr. Speaker, the arctic vortex blast coincides with the 
return of Congress to Washington, D.C.; wind chills well below zero.
  Now, no surprise, a number of my Republican colleagues who are dyed-
in-the-wool climate change deniers, and some of the blathering idiots 
on talk shows said, Whoa, look at this. Arctic vortex proves that there 
is no climate change; there is no global warming. It is all a hoax.
  Well, I would like to begin this new year with a little optimism, and 
hope Congress will take on big challenges, some of the biggest 
challenges of our time, including climate change, but the bizarre 
theories of the climate change deniers, and the excuses they will use, 
probably preclude that.
  Now, given the overwhelming scientific consensus that climate change 
will spur more extreme weather events, yes, including record cold and 
arctic vortexes, with shifts in the jet stream, and droughts and a 
whole host of other things--we had about the driest year on record in 
the Western U.S. this year, in Oregon and California.
  This is a serious challenge. Unfortunately, as I said earlier, this 
Congress, because of denial, is pretty much incapable of dealing with 
this challenge.
  Luckily, we do have an alternative, and that is the President's 
Climate Action Plan, and the fact that the EPA has been found to have 
the authority by the Supreme Court of the United States to regulate 
carbon emissions as pollution. Following through on the President's 
Climate Action Plan is critical to show the rest of the world that the 
United States can again lead on this issue, and we are serious about 
it, and use that leverage to bring other countries into line.
  Now, the EU and others are dealing with it, but there is total denial 
in

[[Page H29]]

China. Back in 2005, the U.S. and China emitted about the same amount 
of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, about 7 million metric tons. 
Five years later, the U.S. is down a little bit. China is up to 10 
million and growing every day. China must be part of this.
  Now, how are we going to get countries like China and others lined up 
on this? Well, I think we have got a strong tool. We can demand 
reductions. We can demand that trade agreements with these nations will 
level the playing field in many ways.
  We have ignored labor and the environment in many of these trade 
agreements. We can't put U.S. manufacturers at a disadvantage when they 
are dealing with climate change issues and carbon dioxide emissions and 
the Chinese aren't, because we live, unfortunately, on the same planet 
as the Chinese, and they are destroying the world's climate very, very 
quickly.
  So, even if we take strong measures here, we have got to force those 
measures on other countries.
  Now, I think that the trade agreements are an ideal place to do this. 
Unfortunately, the Obama administration is of two minds on this issue. 
I have been acting very forcefully to protect the President's authority 
to regulate carbon emissions and encourage the EPA to go ahead with 
strong measures. The Republicans are attempting to overturn and preempt 
that authority, but it does exist.
  Unfortunately, in the Office of the Special Trade Representative, 
appointed by the President of the United States, they are busily 
undermining the President's climate change agenda. Yes, they are acting 
at complete odds with the Environmental Protection Agency.
  The European Union has adopted measures to reduce the global 
greenhouse gas emissions from all fuels and transportation fuels 
included by 10 percent within a relatively short period of time. One of 
those provisions would score the dirtiest sources of fuels as the way 
they should be, for emitting more carbon. That would mean there would 
be a penalty against oil, gasoline, diesel extracted from tar sands--
the dirtiest, most polluting way to obtain oil that anyone knows of.
  Now, the European Union is moving ahead, but now the President's 
Special Trade Representative, appointed by the President, somehow is 
saying that the EU shouldn't do this; the U.S. objects to that, and 
they are in league with Canada in attempting to overturn these steps by 
the European Union.
  The President needs to rein in his Special Trade Representative, and 
we need to protect and encourage the President to deal with this very 
serious issue.

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