On the recordMarch 4, 2013
Now I wish to talk about climate change. It is one of the most serious threats facing our Nation. All you really have to do is look out the window to see it is already happening. I would like to talk about a great thing that happened recently. When USA TODAY, the Nation's largest newspaper in print form--more people read that paper than any other. They announced in a front-page story last Friday, on March 1, that they are going to spend a year looking at the issue of climate change. This is the front page. They show that the temperatures are going up. They talk about more asthma. But let's look at what they say because I am appalled that with all of this going on around us, we seem to have no way forward on this issue. I am going to be here every Monday after votes to talk about this, and I urge every Member of the Senate, Democratic or Republican, who cares about this issue to join me. We have to wake up the American people to the fact that this Senate is doing nothing. Even though I believe there is a majority for doing something, we don't have the 60 votes. So let's talk about it. This is what USA TODAY says: "Why you should sweat climate change.'' More American children are getting asthma and allergies, and more seniors are suffering heat strokes. [Already] food and utility prices are rising. Flooding is overrunning bridges, swamping subways and closing airport runways. We know this is true. People are losing jobs in drought-related factory closings.…
