For Immediate Release: 31 January 2008
Contact: Tom Eisenhauer, for CLCV, 310-409-8475 (cell)
Nearly 1M Calif. Environmental Voters to be Alerted to Presidential Candidates’ stands on state’s central Environmental Issue:
Will the next President join California’s fight against global warming – or continue standing in the way?
OAKLAND & LOS ANGELES – As tonight’s debate in Los Angeles and next Tuesday’s election focus the Presidential primary races on California, the California League of Conservation Voters (CLCV) – the political muscle of the environmental movement in the nation’s leading environmental state – today announced its campaign to ensure nearly 1 million pro-environment voters know where the candidates stand on the state’s landmark global warming strategy.
“California’s strategy for fighting the climate crisis is the model for the nation and the world, and California voters deserve to know whether the Presidential candidates will join our fight against global warming – or continue the Bush-Cheney policy of standing in the way,” said Susan Smartt, CLCV Executive Director. “Along with our partners in the state’s environmental community, CLCV is making sure that nearly one million California environmental voters know exactly where the candidates stand.”
CLCV has asked the remaining Presidential candidates – Hillary Clinton, Mike Huckabee, John McCain, Barack Obama, Ron Paul and Mitt Romney – to respond to four simple questions (below) that together focus on the central environmental issue for California voters in this campaign: Will the next President join California’s fight against global warming – or continue standing in the way?
CLCV’s questions build on the news made in last night’s Republican debate, when all four GOP candidates – in response to a question from respected Los Angeles Times reporter Janet Hook – said they support allowing California to enact tough auto emissions standards that have been blocked by the Bush Administration.
The candidates’ answers will be available to the public on CLCV’s website (www.ecovote.org) starting Friday, and they will be directly sent to members of CLCV and other environmental organizations – nearly 1 million likely California voters concerned about the environment.
In addition, today in Los Angeles, CLCV and its members are joining the national League of Conservation Voters for a voter rally at the Kodak Theater outside the CNN-sponsored Democratic Presidential debate, where environmental activist Laurie David and other California voters will present a petition signed by 256,000 concerned citizens urging the media to include global warming questions in the debate. For the past year, the LCV/CLCV “Heat is On” campaign has encouraged all the Presidential candidates to make global warming a priority campaign issue.
California & Global Warming: Questions for the Candidates
If elected President, would you:
- Oppose any and all efforts to preempt state sovereignty on air pollution and global warming? States have long been the laboratories for innovative environmental policies. We need to protect the ability of states to lead. California has already chosen to go further than any existing federal policy.
- Support an economy-wide cap on greenhouse gas emissions at 1990 levels by 2020 and an 80% reduction in emissions by 2050? This is the essence of California’s landmark AB 32. The Global Warming Solutions Act. It is imperative that any federal policy also base both its short-term and the long-term reduction targets on the dictates of science.
- Support an all out federal/state cooperative effort to rapidly expand energy efficiency and renewable energy investments as an essential component of economic recovery efforts?
- Support a program to impose maximum technologically feasible, cost-effective controls on ships, trains, and trucks to reduce air pollution that causes global warming and accelerates melting of polar ice caps? These major sources are currently not subject to federal climate programs.
About CLCV
The political arm of the environmental movement in the nation’s leading environmental state, the California League of Conservation Voters (CLCV) is the nation’s oldest grassroots environmental political action organization. CLCV uses sophisticated research and campaign tools to identify and support pro-environment elected officials – and to hold them accountable for passing legislation to protect communities and the environment. For decades, California has set the environmental agenda for the nation and the world – from the California Clean Air Act of 1950, to the California Environmental Quality Act of 1970, to the Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006. For more information, visit CLCV's home page at www.ecovote.org.
