Ed Markey: “I thank the gentlelady. Write today's date down, September 22, 2011. The Republicans are now in open warfare against…”

“I thank the gentlelady. Write today's date down, September 22, 2011. The Republicans are now in open warfare against clean energy. Yesterday was an opening salvo, but today is the declaration of war. They've already gutted clean energy research and development budgets by 40 percent for next year. Their budget for the next 3 years promises to cut those investments by 90 percent. They've zeroed out loan guarantee programs for all renewable energy in their budget while leaving intact $25 billion for the nuclear industry. They're prepared to shut down the government rather than rescind one penny of the oil and gas industry's $41 billion in tax subsidies. But clean energy sector gets the hammer. Yesterday, in a gratuitous assist to Big Oil, Republicans tried to kill the Clean Car Factory Fund in order to pay for natural disaster relief. This is the program that is helping American companies manufacture superefficient vehicles that reduce our dangerous dependence on foreign oil from OPEC. But, apparently, that bill wasn't radical enough for the Tea Party base. So tonight, they come back and they're launching their full-frontal assault on clean energy. Yesterday, it was just clean cars. Today, it's solar energy, wind energy and all renewables. Tonight, they take out the full assault attack. But a word of warning. Up to a dozen projects are prepared to receive the green light in the next week.…”