Senate defeat puts climate bill on tough road

Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., left, speaks as Sen. Joseph Lieberman, I-Conn., center, and Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., right, listen, Friday, June 6, 2008, during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington to discuss the environment and climate change. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh) less Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., left, speaks as Sen. Joseph Lieberman, I-Conn., center, and Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., right, listen, Friday, June 6, 2008, during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington to ... more Photo: Susan Walsh, AP Photo: Susan Walsh, AP Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Senate defeat puts climate bill on tough road 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

The Senate debate over a climate change bill this week was supposed to be a warm-up for next year, when a new president who might back deep cuts in U.S. greenhouse gas emissions controls the White House. But, instead, the sharp clash, which ended in the measure's defeat Friday, showed just how difficult it will be for either President Barack Obama or President John McCain to enact a global warming law.

Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., a chief sponsor of the bill, put the best spin on the measure's demise, saying it offers the next president a political road map. "This will show them where they have allies," she said. "This will show them where they have problems."

Procedural vote

The bill, which would have cut U.S. greenhouse gas emissions by two-thirds by 2050, was pulled from the floor by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., Friday after the Senate failed to pass a procedural vote to limit amendments and move the bill forward. The vote was 48-36 - well short of the 60 votes needed to head off a filibuster.

But the bill's sponsors proclaimed it a victory that 54 senators signaled their support for advancing the measure. Six senators who missed the vote - including Obama, D-Ill., McCain, R-Ariz., Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., and Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., who is battling brain cancer - sent statements of support for debate on the bill.

"It may be a small step forward for mankind," said Joe Lieberman, independent-Conn., who has been pushing climate legislation for a decade, "but it's a giant step forward for the United States Senate."

Better showing than in 2005

The tally was a big jump over the 38 votes a similar climate bill received in 2005 - although supporters acknowledged that not all of the senators who voted yes Friday are ready to approve a climate bill without major changes.

Most Republicans opposed the measure, saying it would sharply limit their ability to offer amendments - some of which were aimed at toppling the bill.

"This bill deserved a full and honest debate, with amendments offered and voted upon," said Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., one of the bill's chief critics. "The American people did not deserve a political exercise geared toward election year politics."

Eight Republicans voted to limit amendments and proceed to debate. Two Democrats, Sens. Mary Landrieu, D-La., and Tim Johnson, D-S.D., voted no.

Supporters of the bill had been building toward this week's debate for months, assembling a coalition that included Fortune 500 CEOs, evangelical leaders, labor unions and environmental groups. Their major coup was landing Sen. John Warner, R-Va., the widely respected former Navy secretary, as a chief co-sponsor.

But when Senate leaders scheduled the climate debate months ago for the first week in June, they could hardly have known it would take place in the midst of an unprecedented run-up in gas prices.

Opponents of the bill seized on studies by government agencies and outside groups that suggested that the Climate Security Act, S3036, could raise gas prices as well as electricity bills for consumers.

GOP strategy in memo

A memo by Senate GOP leaders, obtained by Democrats, laid out their strategy to defeat the bill. "The goal is for a theme (example: Climate bill equals higher gas prices) each day, and the focus is much more on making political points than in amending the bill," the memo read in part. It added, "The bottom line is the GOP very much wants to have this fight."

Democrats blasted it as a cynical strategy, but it had an effect. For days, Senate Republicans took to the floor to claim the bill would wreak havoc on the economy. Rather than going straight to amendments, Republicans demanded 30 full hours of debate to pound home the theme.

Republicans also raised concerns over the bill's price tag - $6.7 trillion through 2050 - as industry begins paying for the right to emit greenhouse gases. Even some Democrats questioned how that revenue would be distributed.

Still, supporters of the bill saw signs of progress. Unlike past years, there was almost no debate over climate change science, and most lawmakers agreed Congress should strive to cut emissions.

"The terms of the debate have shifted," said Eileen Claussen, president of the Pew Center on Global Climate Change. "The Senate is now debating the best means - and the cost - of reducing emissions."

More Republican support

The bill has been gradually picking up Republican support. Sens. Elizabeth Dole, R-N.C., Norm Coleman, R-Minn., and both of Maine's GOP senators backed the bill. And several Republican senators who voted no Friday, including freshman Sen. Bob Corker of Tennessee, said they were open to a cap-and-trade system.

Just before the vote, Sen. Mel Martinez, R-Fla., told Lieberman he would side with the bill's sponsors to advance the debate. "He said, 'I did it for my grandchildren', " Lieberman said.

But both sides agree the 492-page bill is going to take weeks of floor time to debate and amend. Sen. Pete Domenici, R-N.M., said the Democratic leaders made the mistake of trying to jam debate into a week. "You can't rush the process," he said.

But the bill's sponsors also have to worry about holding on to support from Democrats. Ten Democratic senators, mostly from the Midwest and South, recently sent Reid and Boxer a letter warning, "We cannot support final passage of the (climate bill) in its current form."

Boxer said she is going to continue meeting with undecided senators of both parties next week to address their concerns. But she said it's also up to voters to pressure their lawmakers to act.

"Every senator who voted no will have to explain their reason," she said. "Everyone will be held accountable."