House Republicans To Axe Dems’ (Nancy Pelosi) Global Warming Committee House Republicans will dissolve the special committee set up by Speaker Nancy Pelosi to study global warming, they said Wednesday.
“We have pledged to save taxpayers’ money by reducing waste and duplication in Congress. The Select Committee on Global Warming — which was created to provide a political forum to promote Washington Democrats’ job-killing national energy tax — was a clear example, and it will not continue in the 112th Congress,” said Michael Steel, a spokesman for House Minority Leader John Boehner, Ohio Republican.
Boehner is set to become Speaker of the House when Republicans assume control in the new Congress next year.
A Republican aide said eliminating the committee will save roughly $2 million a year.
Pelosi spokesman Drew Hammil criticized the decision to end the panel that the outgoing Speaker set up when Democrats took power in the House in 2007.
“It is very disappointing that the House Republican leadership has decided not to prioritize addressing energy independence and climate change in the 112th Congress,” Hammil said. “Disbanding the select committee does not diminish the urgent need to act on these very critical issues.”
Hammil said that “since the committee’s creation, Congress increased vehicle fuel efficiency for the first time in 30 years, made the largest investment in clean energy in the nation’s history, and the House passed sweeping climate change legislation.”
“The Select Committee held dozens of hearings and briefings to educate members and the public on the efforts of the Congress. In addition, the Committee played an important role in holding BP accountable after the Gulf oil rig explosion and ensuring that the public had access to all pertinent information about the resulting spill and cleanup.”
