Democratic leaders in the United States Senate have withdrawn legislation that would have placed a price on carbon, all but killing any chance that a significant climate bill will be passed before President Bush leaves office.
The Lieberman-Warner bill, which calls for a cap-and-trade system that would cut greenhouse gas emissions by 66 percent by 2050, faced vehement opposition from Republicans who said it would harm the American economy and send high gas and energy prices soaring even higher. But in this election year, Democrats also seemed reluctant to pass legislation that might further alienate voters already reeling from gas prices that have surpassed $4 a gallon. Debate on the Lieberman-Warner bill began Monday, and Republicans used a variety of stalling tactics, including requiring that the entire 491-page bill be read aloud. Republican senators also planned to lard the bill with amendments that would have greatly weakened the cap-and-trade scheme envisioned by Lieberman-Warner, which many environmentalists had criticized as already being too lax.
The Lieberman-Warner bill, which calls for a cap-and-trade system that would cut greenhouse gas emissions by 66 percent by 2050, faced vehement opposition from Republicans who said it would harm the American economy and send high gas and energy prices soaring even higher. But in this election year, Democrats also seemed reluctant to pass legislation that might further alienate voters already reeling from gas prices that have surpassed $4 a gallon. Debate on the Lieberman-Warner bill began Monday, and Republicans used a variety of stalling tactics, including requiring that the entire 491-page bill be read aloud. Republican senators also planned to lard the bill with amendments that would have greatly weakened the cap-and-trade scheme envisioned by Lieberman-Warner, which many environmentalists had criticized as already being too lax.