Statement of Congressman Tom Lantos (D-CA) at Government Reform Committee Hearing: "Climate Change Technology Research"

Statement of Congressman Tom Lantos (D-CA) at Government Reform Committee Hearing: "Climate Change Technology Research"

I have been disappointed and dismayed by this Administration's position on climate change. Despite overwhelming scientific evidence proving that global warming is taking place, the Administration has basically removed itself from the international conversation and worked to stifle government scientists.

This is willful ignorance about the severe challenges and strains that will be placed on future generations by the results of climate change. Coupled with an alarming lack of foresight for the national security implications these effects will have on our world, the Administration's policies have significantly weakened our efforts towards a solution of this problem.

The science on this issue is incontrovertible and the need to respond is immediate. The actions taken by the President and this Congress thus far have been woefully inadequate. It is my hope that this hearing just might be the straw that breaks the camel's back against the misinformation campaign engineered by some key energy companies, which have sown seeds of doubt and have slowed a legitimate debate.

Our nation's reliance on foreign oil, which is my principal concern, means that we are providing the enemies of freedom with the resources to oppose the United States or even to wage war against us. If you heard last night Chavez at the United Nations in New York, you know exactly what I'm talking about. But whether it's Chavez, Ahmadinejad, Putin in Moscow or the Wahabis in Saudi Arabia, the amplified voice of these forces of anti-democracy and anti-freedom has been enormously enlarged by virtue of their incredible oil income, which they have gained largely as a result of our policies.

The United States is a leader in scientific research and technological discovery, and we have witnessed the extraordinary results of what happens when our nation harnesses this intellectual resource with the Manhattan project, which made us the first nation to capture the energy of the atom, or the Apollo project that put an American on the moon.

The most abundant source of energy savings, Mr. Chairman, is conservation. Although we must provide the impetus for research and development into new technologies, the most immediate and effective means of reducing our reliance on current fuel sources is to be intelligent about cutting back on their use. That's not a matter of creating new technologies, but making people more conscious of existing ways to reduce energy waste.

The time has come for America to rise up and face the challenge of relieving itself from its dependency on carbon-based energy and the pollutants that come with it. We need to reach beyond our current energy policy and achieve this goal through a nationwide effort, combining both conservation efforts and increases in research and development of alternate energy sources.

Mr. Chairman, while this hearing is ostensibly about American government policy and the need for a nationwide project to make America a carbon-neutral nation, let me speak for a moment on the International Relations aspect of this project and the imperative need for us to reach out to the global community on this issue. We must re-engage the international community in order to seek successful solutions and best practices. The interconnection of international energy policy and the effects on climate change will only continue to increase in the years ahead.

I hope that our president and our Congress can have the vision of a Roosevelt or a Kennedy to see just over the horizon. We need to lead the American people to work together to unshackle us from our dependency on foreign energy, and to preserve the environment for the sake of those who will inherit this world from us.

http://www.lantos.org/news_statement_2006-09-21.html