David Obey: “The Global Environmental Facility was created to help Third World countries take into account the effects of their…”

“The Global Environmental Facility was created to help Third World countries take into account the effects of their development activities on the worldwide ecosystem. It was created to focus the world's efforts on preventing climate change, on preventing environmental degradation and preventing ozone depletion. The gentleman from Texas [Mr. DeLay] has cited a 1993 report which raises questions about the operation of the GEF. I do not challenge that report in any way. What I think the gentleman from Texas [Mr. DeLay] has not mentioned, however, is that the Administration used that report as the basis for our negotiating position with some 73 other countries and secured the changes which that report suggested as part of the negotiating process. The administration, in negotiations, assured that there would, in fact, be independence from the World Bank. They assured that the United States would be in a strong position to stop bad loans. And they assured a much greater degree of fiscal responsibility by scaling back the size of that facility from the proposed $4 billion to $2 billion. The United States did not sign on until it won what it wanted to win in that negotiating process. Now we have an international agreement between 73 nations, including the United States.”