President Obama Reaffirms Commitment to Tackling Global Warming

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Nathan Willcox

Environment America

Washington, DC—Tonight at the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, N.C., President Obama said we must reduce the carbon pollution that is warming the planet because “climate change is not a hoax.” He added that more droughts and wildfires are real, and that they pose a threat to our children’s future. He also added that he would not allow oil companies to write our energy policy or threaten our coastlines. The President’s statements on global warming reflect what numerous polls show: that a majority of Americans believe that global warming is real, that carbon pollution is fueling the problem, and that our elected officials should be doing more to solve this problem.

Beyond stronger hurricanes — like Isaac that flooded coastal communities in Louisiana just last week — many of the other predicted impacts of global warming have been taking their toll on communities across the U.S. over the past twelve months. We’ve seen deadly heat waves, flooding, extreme drought and wildfires. To help prevent the worst predicted consequences of global warming, the Obama administration has pushed ahead with several historic efforts to cut emissions of the carbon pollution fueling global warming, including clean car standards which will double the fuel efficiency of new cars and trucks by 2025, the first-ever carbon pollution standards for new power plants, and a doubling of the production of clean energy production.

Environment America’s Global Warming Program Director Nathan Willcox issued the following statement in response to the President’s address tonight:

“Thanks to President Obama’s actions to tackle global warming and promote clean energy, Americans will breathe cleaner air, drive cleaner cars, and rely more on cleaner energy from the wind and the sun.

“By reaffirming his commitment to tackling global warming, the President demonstrated that he intends to build on the historic steps his administration has already taken to cut dangerous carbon emissions, for the sake of our environment, our health and our families’ future. While Mitt Romney used his convention acceptance speech to mock the problem and the urgency of tackling global warming, President Barack Obama laid out a plan to increase the nation’s reliance on clean renewable energy, reduce dangerous air pollution and tackle global warming. President Obama has demonstrated real results in his first term. His speech tonight clearly shows that he is the right choice for our environment and our health going forward.”

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Paid for by Environment America. Not authorized by any candidate or candidate’s committee.