Highlight of the Week: Public Behind Them, Lawmakers Continue Legislative Momentum

Members of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee began marking up their version of comprehensive climate and energy legislation, buoyed by a CNN poll showing that 60 percent of Americans support efforts to limit carbon pollution.

 

"The committee is laying the tracks that will carry the bill to the finish line," said Jeremy Symons, senior vice president for conservation at the National Wildlife Federation.

 

Committee chairman Barbara Boxer's (D-Calif.) recently-unveiled version of a clean energy bill calls for reducing U.S. carbon pollution, promoting energy independence, and transitioning to a clean energy economy. Since its introduction, the Clean Energy Jobs and American Power Act, co-sponsored by Sen. Boxer and Foreign Relations Committee Chair John Kerry (D-MA), has drawn diverse allies, including Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans, and sportsman groups.