[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 215 (Tuesday, December 14, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Page S9130]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                         Build Back Better Act

  Mr. President, on a related matter, while we cannot say that last 
week's killer tornadoes were directly related to climate change, there 
is no doubt among scientists that climate change is making the world's 
weather patterns more volatile and destructive.
  How many times in the past year have Members of this Senate come to 
the floor to respond to a once-in-a-century heat wave or a once-in-a-
century storm that has hit their home State? I will just say, for 
tornadoes, you can't be a kid growing up in the Midwest, as I was, and 
not know about tornadoes--how many times in the middle of the summer we 
were rousted from our bed as the sirens went off, and Mom would take us 
down to the basement, a safe place, until the storm would blow over. 
That was a summer phenomena.
  I just have to remind you that we just went through a December 
tornado in that same area--unheard of in years gone by.
  Over the summer, the Pacific Northwest burned in the worst heat wave 
on record; there were droughts in Western States; a polar vortex 
knocked a Texas power grid offline. Each of these deadly and disastrous 
weather events are related to the next, and it is fair warning to all 
of us that what is happening to the climate in the United States is 
happening around the world.
  Just yesterday, scientists warned that a glacier the size of Florida 
is at risk of splitting apart in the next few years, causing 
catastrophic rise in sea levels that could threaten the millions of 
people living in coastal areas.
  When we talk about Build Back Better, the reconciliation bill, and 
that part of the bill that is focused on environmental resilience, 
being ready to protect ourselves and to bounce back, if necessary, when 
extreme weather hits, it is the topic in this morning's newspaper, and 
it will be in tomorrow's as well.
  We ought to be coming together and finally putting aside our 
political differences and realize that climate change is the threat to 
us now and an even greater threat to our children and grandchildren.
  Last week, I received a letter from one of the small business owners 
in our area, Dr. Dane Glueck. A few years ago, he started a company 
called StraightUp Solar, developing solar energy systems for homes and 
businesses in my State of Illinois and Missouri.
  He wrote and he said: ``Solar is a job-creator, and the long-term tax 
incentives in the Build Back Better Act for solar, storage, and 
domestic manufacturing will put us on a path to decarbonize the 
electric grid, reach the President's 2035 clean energy target, and 
create hundreds of thousands of quality career opportunities in every 
community.''
  Today, Dr. Glueck employs almost 100 people throughout the Midwest, 
but with investments in the Build Back Better Act, the reconciliation 
bill, he is going to expand operation and hire more workers. Let's give 
him the incentive that he needs.
  I heard the Senator from Kentucky, the Republican leader, coming to 
the floor, and, once again, he is critical of this whole effort. I wish 
he would stop and reflect on the fact that our incentives to move in 
the right direction on the environment really are an important part of 
the conversation we should have after the devastation last Friday in 
his State and mine and across the Midwest.
  It is time to transform our environmental crisis into an economic 
catalyst.