Republicans Propose Limiting Obama Climate Plan in Budget
BLOOMBERG - House Republicans proposed cutting the Environmental Protection Agency’s budget by a third and denying funds for a key part of President Barack Obama’s plan to combat global warming.
The House Appropriations committee’s panel that oversees the EPA will consider cutting $2.8 billion from the agency’s 2014 budget, and prohibit the administration from spending on greenhouse-gas rules for power plants, the centerpiece of Obama’s climate plan. The budget for the year starting Oct. 1, which will get a vote tomorrow in the subcommittee, also would bar the EPA from imposing new curbs on sulfur in gasoline and on the use of water by power plants.
Obama’s Climate Plan: A Historic Turning Point or Too Reliant on Oil, Coal, Natural Gas?
DEMOCRACY NOW - President Obama has unveiled a climate plan that imposes the first limits on greenhouse gas emissions from new and existing power plants. The move will not require congressional approval, meaning Obama can bypass expected Republican-led opposition.
In his address, Obama also outlined a broad range of measures to protect coastlines and cities from rising sea levels, and vowed to promote the development of renewable energy. In a development that has led both opponents and supporters of the Keystone XL oil pipeline to express optimism for their side, Obama said approval of the project will be contingent upon assuring it "does not significantly exacerbate the problem of carbon pollution." Just how successful Obama will be in carrying out his sweeping plan to address climate change — and whether it goes far enough — is a matter of debate.
We assess his speech with two guests holding differing views: Dan Lashof of the Natural Resources Defense Council and Tyson Slocum of Public Citizen.
