Bush says US climate bill must include India
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04/06/2008
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Times Of India (New Delhi)
Will Veto Legislation That Leaves Out India, China Washington: President George Bush would veto climate change legislation to be considered by the US Senate this week because it does not seek action in concert with all major economies, including India and China, even if the Senate passes the bill. As the president said last April "there is a right way and a wrong way to reduce greenhouse gas emissions,' White House spokesperson Dana Perino said on Monday, suggesting "the bill being debated on the floor this week in the Senate is the wrong way'. Bush had then also laid out principles "for what he believes is the right way: investing in new technologies, setting realistic goals, emission-free nuclear power, and ensuring that we act in concert with statements by all major economies, including China and India'. "As the legislation is drafted, if it were to pass in its current form, the president would veto it,' Perino said. But she added: "It's very unlikely to pass the Senate anyway.' "The proposed legislation if enacted would result in one of the largest costs ever imposed on Americans,' she said, explaining the Bush administration's objections to the bill. "To put it simply, we believe it would cost way too much and achieve way too little.' The bill before the Senate, which is not expected to become law this year before November, could cut total US global warming emissions by 66% by 2050. The proposed legislation "would be one of the largest costs ever imposed on the American people, and that is a debate that we need to have and people need to be aware of the costs', Perino said. Meanwhile, Bush is working through his negotiators with the major economies, she said, describing it as "one of the things President Bush has done that other leaders have not been able to do, but I think that they're all grateful for his leadership on it'. Bush had brought "the major economies of the world together, including India and China, to the table to talk about how do we set a midterm goal, and then how do we all achieve it', Perino said. "We're not going to impose ways to get there on people, but we are going to insist that everyone comes to the table and that everyone be a part of it, unlike this current version, which would just harm our economy, cost our consumers, and not solve the problem,' she added. IANS EMISSION ROW: George Bush