Press Releases

Washington, D.C. (November 12, 2014) – Last night, President Obama and Chinese President Xi Jinping announced that they reached an agreement for carbon emissions spanning the next two decades. In the agreement, President Obama committed the United States to curbing its carbon emissions by 26-28% by 2025 while China promised to keep increasing its own emissions through 2030.

Western Caucus Co-Chairs Steve Pearce (NM-02) and Cynthia Lummis (WY-At Large) released the following statements in response to the announcement:

“President Obama’s agreement with President Xi Jinping was deeply irresponsible,” said Chairman Pearce. “The agreement would place regulatory restraints on the American economy causing an increase in electricity rates for middle class families and a loss of thousands of good paying American jobs. I am deeply concerned that the President would knowingly hamper the American economy while allowing China to continue on its current course for another decade before it even has to consider making restrictions under this non-binding agreement. The President’s unilateral attack on affordable energy for Americans must come to an end.  This agreement shows that the President is not listening to the American people like he said he would.”

“With President Obama promising to handcuff our economy immediately with a promise from China that they might level off their exploding carbon emissions in fifteen years, the United States gets the raw end of this supposed ‘deal’ and in the process does virtually nothing to reduce global carbon emissions,” said Chairman Lummis.  “CNN quotes an administration official saying the deal will ‘save literally billions of dollars’.  Tell that to the middle class workers who will be laid off. Tell that to struggling American families who will face even steeper utility prices every time they turn on a light.  If only the president was as willing to work with Congress as he is to capitulate to foreign governments we could get work done for our economy and the American people, who will lose the most in this deal with China.”