CNN "Newsroom" - Transcript: Interview with Rep. Tonko

Interview

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PAUL: This week NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reported this past year, 2018, was the fourth hottest year on record, and 18 of the hottest 19 years have happened since 2001. It hasn't been discussed much on Capitol Hill in several years. In fact, until Wednesday the House Subcommittee on Environment and Climate Change hadn't really held a hearing on this topic since 2013, almost six years. So in announcing the hearing, the committee said this, quote, "It is long past time for this committee to begin seriously examining how climate change is effecting communities, environments, and economy, and take action to reduce its harmful effects."

With us now, Congressman Paul Tonko of New York. He's the chairman of the Subcommittee on Environment and Climate Change. Thank you so much, Congressman, for being with us. We appreciate it.

REP. PAUL TONKO (D-NY) ENVIRONMENT AND CLIMATE CHANGE SUBCOMMITTEE CHAIRMAN: My pleasure, Christi.

PAUL: Good to have you. So let's talk about what happened on Wednesday in this meeting. For you personally, what was the biggest take away?

TONKO: I think what was encouraging was that people from both sides were acknowledging the time has long been waiting for addressing climate change. And there are those, I think mother nature is speaking boldly, and people are committing to the need for legislation that addresses climate change and the impact on our country and our economy.

[10:40:08] PAUL: So when you say action to reduce its harmful effects need to be taken, you have President Trump who does not believe the science that backs climate change, you have got the fact that he pulled out of the Paris Accord, you've got Republicans who still control the Senate. Realistically, what action do you think can be taken?

TONKO: Well, as we speak the subcommittee is advancing legislation that would weatherize millions of homes and upgrade, modernize our electric grid, and harden our infrastructure so as to better prepare for extreme weather conditions that already exist. And I think that is very important.

And then furthermore, in the meantime we will develop and build a national comprehensive plan that will offer a green transition to a clean, more competitive economy. So it's a two track approach, and I think we will build support for that effort as we go forward.

PAUL: So let's talk about the Green New Deal since you're talking about a plan here. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez helped introduce this with Senator Ed Markey. The goal is to be carbon neutral in 10 years. People have called this aggressive, they've called it impossible, meeting 100 percent of power demands through renewable energy, they say, eliminating pollution and greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture, overhauling transportation systems, including expanding high speed rail to, quote, a scale where air travel stops becoming necessary. Domestically speaking, do you think this is realistic?

TONKO: I think that the Green New Deal offers a lot of passion, a lot of goals with which I agree. I thank the people who are supporting the effort for building the passion and raising the consciousness across the country. But my priority has got to be as chair of the subcommittee to build the tools that will get us to those goals. And I think that all ideas should be put on the table. We should embrace those and build the consensus that will speak to impacts that we have seen.

In just the last calendar year, Christi, some 14 extreme weather conditions caused by climate change have had an economic impact of some $91 billion. You look at the last decade, and it's easy to suggest that hundreds of billions has been the toll, billions of dollars have been the toll on our economy because of a lack of addressing climate change.

PAUL: So do you have any indication that you've got bipartisan support for this?

TONKO: I think that, again, there are many who will come to some of the immediate agenda that we can do -- weatherization, energy efficiency programming, research to develop batteries that can provide for an underpinning of intermittent power, certainly refueling stations for electrification of our transportation sector. These are items -- and certainly modernizing our grid. These are items we can strike bipartisan, bicameral agreement upon, and move forward with an aggressive plan that speaks to an agenda that is impacting our economy severely.

PAUL: Congressman Paul Tonko, thank you so much for taking time to be with us.

TONKO: It's my pleasure. And always good to be with you on CNN.

PAUL: Thank you so much.

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