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SENATOR WILL NOT SUPPORT CLIMATE CHANGE BILL WITHOUT OFFSHORE DRILLING PROVISION
U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham took to one of Columbia’s most popular radio talk shows Wednesday to discuss his controversial decision to consider supporting hotly-debated cap-and-trade legislation.
Graham published a guest editorial with Democratic colleague John Kerry last week in which he said he was willing to back a comprehensive climate change bill that addresses the cost-conscious concerns of his fellow Republicans.
“We are also convinced that we have found both a framework for climate legislation to pass Congress and the blueprint for a clean-energy future that will revitalize our economy, protect current jobs and create new ones, safeguard our national security and reduce pollution,” Graham and Kerry wrote.
But Graham was quick to note that he did not support the current Congressional cap-and-trade proposal, a point he reinforced on Keven Cohen’s show Wednesday on WVOC.
“Legislation that exists today in Congress I’m not interested in because [it would] pass on a lot of taxes to our business and rate payers … [and] put us at a competitive disadvantage,” Graham said. “What I [am] interested in is energy independence and making a cleaner and safer environment.”
[LISTEN TO COMPLETE AUDIO HERE]
Graham described his decision to support a cap-and-trade proposal as a compromise in the interest of national security.
“Here’s what I need for me to support a climate change bill: I need an offshore drilling provision that would allow us to increase our inventories and generate money to create jobs and create more domestic capacity — not just some drilling, but aggressive drilling,” said Graham, noting that the U.S. has sent $440 billion overseas to buy oil from “some of the worst people in the world.”
Graham said legislation must be business friendly and include clean coal and nuclear power titles.
The state’s senior senator said he wants to build 100 nuclear power plants by reforming the permitting process to expedite construction as well as tax benefits for energy companies to invest in nuclear technology or “there won’t be a bill.”
Graham added that South Carolina stands to benefit more than any other state in the nation from a “Renaissance in nuclear power” because of the amount of money received from the Savannah River Site and four nuclear power plants already located here.
“What I’m trying to do is open up the oil and gas reserves that exist in large numbers in the United States,” Graham said. “If [Democrats] want to get 60 votes for a reasonable cap-and-trade bill, [they are] going to have to open up the United States to energy exploration.”
Photo: Reuters
Mark Sanford is in trouble for aggressive drilling. We don’t need anymore of that. I don’t want anyones trade or caps. Just give me cheaper gas. That’s what we all need.
It is imperative that we elect somone other that Lindsey Graham. He will cost thousands of jobs in SC and will help Obama lead us into Marxism. Who is the ideal candidate?
What is the point of creating a clean energy bill while endorsing off-shore drilling? Something is critically wrong with this man’s position- A focus cannot be on both the modernizing of American energy and upon a perservance of the old methods. I do not support a bill that is going to be mutated by corporations and slain upon the innocent, this bill is meant to revoltionize American Technology and create a sort of energetic cultural renasaince. What is this man attempting to do to our bill?
Jill, with all due respect you need to get a clue. Alternative energy is something we need to work towards, but is so far off from being able to produce enough energy to support a healthy economy. Anyone who uses their common sense knows we will need oil for decades to come. We need to drill, but we don’t need Cap and Tax. I think Graham has finally done enough that his political career will probably be over after this term. He has done too much for conservative South Carolinians to forget.
This illustrates a problem with politics. We should hold our politicians to a higher standard where they only vote on bills they actually support.
Graham has been offered a carrot and will betray his conservative ideals of small responsible government for big/huge government and unnecessary central planning, as long as our state gets that carrot.
I can’t quite blame Kerry for trying to buy votes, but, shame on Graham for being so easily bought.
Does Graham really think that by supporting cap and trade he will get what he wants. Look what’s happening with the land leases in Utah right now. There is no way off-shore drilling or nuclear energy will happen under the current administration. Write your Senators and make sure they don’t go the way of Graham at http://tiny.cc/pxIgi.
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No compromise = government contempt in a 60 vote senate. Reps will hand Goldman and Exxon $4+ gas and us a weak dollar. Thanks, conservatives.
[...] the Charleston County Republican Party censured Graham this week for working with Democrats to include in a climate change bill measures that would expand offshore drilling as well as nuclear energy, clean coal and natural gas [...]