OFFICE OF THE MAJORITY LEADER

TRANSCRIPT

Details Discussed of Climate Change Bill on Fox News
June 26, 2009

... BS9 BRIAN: A CLIMATE CHANGE BILL HITS THE HOUSE FLOOR, AND IT'S HAPPENING TODAY. THIS GREEN INITIATIVE WILL COST YOU BIG BUCKS PERHAPS. IS NOW THE TIME TO INCREASE TAXES? STEVE: LET'S TALK TO STENY HOYER FROM THE GREAT STATE OF MARYLAND WHO JOINS US LIVE FROM CAPITOL HILL. GOOD MORNING, SIR. >> GOOD MORNING, GOOD TO BE HERE. STEVE: THERE ARE SO MANY NUMBERS FLOATING AROUND REGARDING THE WHOLE CAP AND TRADE IDEA. I READ ONE THING, CRITICS OF THIS SAY IT'S GOING TO COST THE AVERAGE AMERICAN FAMILY $3,000 A YEAR, AND OTHERS -- >> THAT'S -- STEVE: THE CBO SAID MAYBE $175 A YEAR. WHAT IS THE ANSWER ACCORDING TO YOUR CALCULATIONS HOW MUCH IT'S GOING TO COST US IF IT DOES PASS? >> EPA AND CBO WHICH IS THE INDEPENDENT FISCAL ANALYST THAT SERVES THE CONGRESS AND INDEED THE GOVERNMENT INDICATES THAT IT'S GOING TO BE ABOUT MAYBE $140 TO $175 PER YEAR, AND THAT MEANS ABOUT THE COST OF A POSTAGE STAMP PER DAY. THE FACT OF THE MATTER IS, THOUGH, THAT THERE'S NO TAX IN THIS BILL. THIS IS AN ATTEMPT THROUGH THE FREE MARKET SYSTEM TO ADDRESS THE GLOBAL WARMING ISSUE TO MAKE US ENERGY INDEPENDENT AND TO FOCUS ON INNOVATION AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF RENEWABLE ENERGY SOURCES WHICH WILL MAKE US ENERGY INDEPENDENT IN THE FUTURE WHICH IS CRITICAL FOR OUR NATIONAL SECURITY. SO I THINK THE OPPONENTS OF THE BILL ARE USING WILDLY INFLATED FIGURES WHICH ARE NOT SUPPORTED BY THE FACTS. IT WILL OBVIOUSLY HAVE SOME COST TO INVEST, BUT IT WILL ALSO, WE THINK, SPUR BUSINESS, CREATE JOBS, AND A GREEN ECONOMY. GRETCHEN: DO YOU BELIEVE THIS ONE PARTICULAR NUMBER BECAUSE THE NEW RULES WILL COST THE AVERAGE HOUSEHOLD $175 A YEAR. DO YOU BELIEVE THAT NUMBER TO BE CORRECT? >> I THINK IT'S IN THE BALLPARK, YES, THAT'S THE CBO NUMBER, EPA AGREES WITH THAT NUMBER, AND SO I THINK THAT'S PRETTY CLOSE TO THE PROJECTED POSSIBLE COST OF THIS BILL. BUT IT ALSO WILL SPUR, I THINK, THE GROWTH IN OUR ECONOMY, CREATION OF GREEN JOBS, AND HOPEFULLY SELLING CLEAN ENERGY TECHNOLOGY TO THE REST OF THE WORLD BECAUSE OBVIOUSLY WHAT THE UNITED STATES DOES NO MATTER HOW EFFECTIVE WE ARE IN CLEAN AIR ENVIRONMENT, WE KNOW IF CHINA AND INDIA AND OTHER GROWING INDUSTRIAL NATIONS, MUJ INDUSTRIAL NATIONS OF THE WORLD KEEP POLLUTING, OUR EFFORTS ALONE WILL NOT DO THE TRICK. IT HAS TO BE A GLOBAL EFFORT. BRIAN: IS THAT WHY YOU'RE PROPOSING PENALIZING OTHER NATIONS WHO DON'T HAVE THESE GREEN STANDARDS THAT FAIL TO GO ALONG WITH CLIMATE CHANGE, SO THEIR IMPORTS WILL BE PENALIZED AND TAXED AND TARIFFS? >> CLEARLY WHAT WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO DO IS MOVE AHEAD TO ENCOURAGE, AND, AS YOU KNOW, THERE'S A MEETING IN COPENHAGEN COMING UP IN DECEMBER. WHAT WE WANT TO DO IS VOLUNTARILY ENTER INTO AGREEMENTS WITH THE GLOBAL COMMUNITY BECAUSE THIS IS A GLOBAL CHALLENGE THAT WE FACE. THE COST OF OIL KEEPS GOING UP. WE HAVE TO HAVE SOURCES OF ENERGY OTHER THAN PETROLEUM-BASED PRODUCTS WHICH ARE CAUSING THE GLOBAL WARMING PHENOMENON, IT'S GOING TO COST OUR ECONOMY, AND WE ARE HOPEFUL, AND WE BELIEVE THIS CAN BE DONE IN A GOOD WAY. GRETCHEN: DO YOU THINK IT'S PROBLEMATIC FOR THE PRESIDENT? HE PROMISED NOT TO RAISE TAXES, AND THIS WOULD BE RAISING TAXES. >> BY ALL ACCOUNTS, THE PEOPLE WHO HAVE OVER THE YEARS SAID GLOBAL WARMING WAS NOT A PROBLEM AND WE REALLY DIDN'T NEED TO TAKE ACTION. GEORGE BUSH IN HIS LAST YEAR IN OFFICE SAID NO, GLOBAL WARMING IS A PROBLEM, AND WE NEED TO ADDRESS IT. WE'RE NOT RAISING TAXES. WILL THERE BE SOME COST ASSOCIATED WITH THIS? THERE MAY WELL BE. BUT THAT'S GOING TO BE MINIMAL IN TERMS OF THE RETURN THAT WE EXPECT. BRIAN: LET'S JUST HOPE IT'S NOT LIKE SPAIN WHERE THEY HAVE 20% UNEMPLOYMENT AND DID THE SAME EXACT THING, AND MOST OF THEIR GREEN JOBS HAVE BEEN TEMPORARY JOBS THAT COST MORE THAN THEY'RE WORTH. >> WELL, LET'S HOPE SO, AND I DON'T THINK IT'S GOING TO BE, AND AMERICA HAS THROUGH THE CENTURIES CERTAINLY IN THE LAST CENTURY, SHOWED THAT THREE INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY IT CAN MOVE FROM ONE ECONOMY TO THE NEXT WITH A VERY EFFECTIVE GROWTH IN OUR ECONOMY AND CREATION OF JOBS, AND GROWTH IN OUR GDP. STEVE: STENY HOYER JOINING US LIVE FROM CAPITOL HILL, THANK YOU, SIR, FOR JOINING US TODAY. >> YOU BET. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. BRIAN: 32 MINUTES BEFORE THE TOP OF THE HOUR. NEW DETAILS EMERGING ABOUT SOUTH CAROLINA GOVERNOR MARK SANFORD'S ...