Political Quotes

“I wish to briefly address these two amendments. The first amendment simply says that the United States should not sign an international environmental agreement that would do serious harm to our own economy. That commonsense principle passed the Senate by a vote of 95 to 0 in 1997. Last year, the administration announced the climate agreement with China. That agreement requires significant short-term carbon emission reductions here in the United States, but China is allowed to continue increasing its carbon emissions until 2030. That disparity could place the United States at a significant economic disadvantage. In November, global talks began in Paris on a broader international agreement. My amendment simply states what every Senator who voted in 1997 said: No agreement should cause serious harm to the American economy. My second amendment protects the reliability of our electricity grid. North American Electric Reliability Corporation released a report that found that the targets set forward in the President's Clean Power Plan will be difficult if not impossible to achieve without degrading the reliability of the grid. We all want to have our lights turn on and our heat and air- conditioning work. This is in peril. My amendment simply makes sure families and businesses have the reliable electricity they expect by blocking the EPA from finalizing, proposing, or issuing any regulation that would reduce the reliability of the electricity grid.…”