Letter: Another look at Walz's vote on climate change

• Rep. Tim Walz

Rep. Tim Walz

Talk about it

I, too, would like to comment on Mr. Walz’s climate change vote. While the tribute paid to him in the July 7 letter from Mr. Peterson was certainly heartwarming, I believe it may have been a bit misleading.

The notion that Mr. Walz voted for the cap and trade bill is certainly indisputable. The notion, however, that he voted to combat global climate change is absurd. The global climate has remained constant or cooled since 2001. The polar bears are reaching record numbers. The science behind the global warming/change issue is being called more and more into question.

What cannot be questioned is the fact that what Mr. Walz voted for was more government control of more industries and astronomical tax increases on Americans already struggling to pay for the “bold and necessary step” of economic stimulation.

The cap and trade bill will drive up taxes and the cost of manufacturing.

Higher manufacturing costs will drive manufacturing overseas where there aren’t such stringent regulations on carbon emissions as here in the U.S.

The net result is that we lose jobs to foreign countries that, lacking our superior technology, will do far more damage to the environment. If Mr. Walz’s true intentions were to combat global climate change, he would be clamoring for using our superior technology to extract our own energy resources more environmentally soundly than anyone or anywhere in the world.

I wonder if Mr. Walz, who is willing to gamble billions of our dollars on a fifty year weather forecast, would be as willing to gamble a hundred dollars of his own money on the accuracy of a 10-day forecast?

Tags: tim walz, global warming, climate change, opinion, letters