By Shelley Kofler, KERA News
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/kera/local-kera-876417.mp3
Dallas, TX –
Congressman Joe Barton of Arlington has taken his skepticism of global warming to the climate conference in Copenhagen. Barton and other House Republicans are holding a press conference to voice opposition to Obama administration plans for reducing air emissions. KERA's Shelley Kofler reports.
Congressman Joe Barton of Arlington claims global warming is a theory, not a science. Barton's a former oil company engineer and a ranking member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee.
Barton: I don't want to put the economy at risk until we know there is warming and that's bad.
Barton is among House Republicans in Copenhagen with Speaker Nancy Pelosi. They're using the high profile summit to challenge Pelosi and the Obama administration's support of legislation that requires industry to reduce carbon dioxide emissions.
The bill has passed the House but stalled in the Senate. Pelosi and supporters say a commitment to emission reductions will help the United States create clean energy jobs. Barton predicts economic hardship.
Barton: If we do what the climate change bill in the House says we are supposed to do we have to cut our CO2 emissions by 83 percent in the next 40 years and that will cost millions of American jobs and trillions of dollars to the U.S. economy.
Barton and other Republicans say they'll also try to block the Environmental Protection Agency from regulating greenhouse gases. The regulations would have a big effect in Texas, which leads the nation in global warming emissions.