The Senate is set to take up climate change legislation next week in the form of a bill (S. 2191) being offered by Senator Lieberman (ID-CT) and Senator Warner (R-VA). Senator Boxer (D-CA), who will be offering a substitute amendment which will update, modify and add to some provisions within the bill has also been a key supporter. The action starts with a cloture vote to begin debating the measure.
That vote, as The Crypt notes, still has an uncertain outcome:
Congressional aides still disagree whether the required 60 votes can be rounded up to begin debating the climate bill, sponsored by Sens. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) and John Warner (R-Va.). And lobbyists say the final count will be largely determined by what fence-sitting senators hear from their constituents during this week’s congressional break.
Additionally, you will not be surprised to know that outside groups have begun to ratchet up their lobbying efforts on the legislation:
But that hasn’t stopped the American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity and the Club for Growth from unleashing a full-scale advertising campaign targeting coal-heavy states, warning lawmakers the legislation could decimate the economy.
The Sierra Club and other green groups still argue that Lieberman-Warner misses the mark on significant emissions reductions.
We thought we would give you the opportunity to do a little self-research on the bill from two differing points of view. The first originates from the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think-tank, which recently released a study that outlines their projected economic impact on all 50 states were the bill to be implemented.
The second perspective comes from the progressive side of things in this report written on the bill by the Center for American Progress.
