Sen. Jeff Bingaman, who is emerging as the point person for any energy bill this year, ended a C-Span interview yesterday with a strikingly candid statement:
There is a big gap between what the scientists say we should do to deal with climate change, and what the politics of the Congress today, and particularly the politics of the Senate, will allow us to do.
Bingaman did not say this to angrily condemn the inability of his colleagues to govern on the basis of facts, though he did offer that this gap was “unfortunate.”
He said it to calmly lower people’s expectations in regards to whether even a partial cap on carbon pollution can be passed this year.
And while his calm candor is appreciated, the rest of us should not calmly accept that our elected representatives will not “allow” policies based on sound science to be enacted.
Tell your Senators there should be no gap between what the science says and what our policies are.
Several organizations, including the National Resources Defense Council and the Environmental Defense Fund have action campaigns urging the Senate to pass comprehensive climate protection and clean energy jobs legislation.
But maybe the one from the Union of Concerned Scientists is the best way to deliver the message.
