Freshman Senators Buck Old Guard, Call for Strong Climate Action

The new blood in the Senate wants comprehensive climate action. Freshman Democrats wrote the majority leader today saying that “America’s current energy policy is untenable,”  and that the “scale of this challenge dictates the need for a comprehensive solution that includes making polluters pay through a price on greenhouse gas emissions.” Read the full letter (pdf).  

This is a class that campaigned on clean energy and climate in the last election after all, and had the electorate on their side (see Zogby’s November 2008 poll for a refresher).  57 percent of voters said global warming action was an important reason for their vote. A lot has changed of course, but energy policy remains a strength for their party. A new Fox poll today shows Democrats have a nine point advantage with the electorate on energy, 46 to 37.