Schumer: ‘I Will Not Pass an Infrastructure Package that Does Not Reduce Carbon Pollution’
Majority Leader makes promise as bipartisan deal clears first major hurdle
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) didn't give himself much time to celebrate a major victory for the bipartisan infrastructure proposal he's been shepherding through the Senate before he was before cameras staking out a new ambition — ensuring that the infrastructure spending approved by Congress tackles global climate change in a meaningful way.
After months of wrangling — and President Biden pare back the size of his original American Jobs Plan infrastructure program in order to win over GOP votes — more than a dozen Senate Republicans joined Democrats Wednesday to advance the bipartisan infrastructure deal.
There is more work ahead before the infrastructure deal can go to Biden's desk to become law, but Wednesday's vote was a sign of significant progress.
Schumer announced that he intends to pass both the bipartisan infrastructure proposal — as well as a separate, larger spending bill Democrats plan to approve on their own through a process known as “reconciliation” — before the start of the impending August recess.
The majority leader also committed to a priority which has been crucial for both Biden and Democratic progressives, and that is using the spending to seriously address ongoing global climate change and its need to move the economy away from fossil fuels.
“We feel an urgency to get it done. We know that we can’t let this moment passes by. It’s our time to act. And as majority leader I have made it clear, I will not pass an infrastructure package that does not reduce carbon pollution at a scale commensurate with the urgency of the climate crisis we face plain and simple and that’s what Democrats intend to do,” Schumer said at an outdoor press conference. “We’re united in taking on the climate crisis as we move forward with a bold infrastructure plan, the jobs and family plan and through the bipartisan infrastructure bill and the budget of reconciliation bill the Senate will make our largest investments to tackle the climate crisis and environmental justice ever, ever in our nation’s history. We’re going to act in a bold and comprehensive way to reduce emissions, make our infrastructure resilient, create the green jobs in the future.
“The three legs of the stool that Joe Biden has so brilliantly put together in his plan include climate, economic justice for communities, particularly communities of color that have been left out, and jobs, good, paying jobs. And in so many instances like in the Clean Cars for America proposal, which I was proud to author and President Biden put into his plan. We have union support. We even have some industry support. It’s spreading,” Schumer added. “Everyone knows the crisis, it’s only the people with their head in the sand or some of our Republican colleagues, who are in the palm of the oil, gas and coal industry who don’t realize it or who don’t want to realize it, but the rest of the world and the rest of the country does.
“And so we’re going to work to establish — to reestablish the U S as the global leader in the fight against climate crisis, put our nation on a path to meet our president’s bold commitment to reduce emissions by 50 percent in 2030,” he said.
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