For those who missed this lovely tidbit in Wednesday’s Bloomberg story:
Missouri Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill questioned whether the Senate would have anything left for the global warming debate after it is finished with health care.
So, let me get this straight. Passing one bill was so very, very tough that Congress cannot possibly have the stomach to take on another immediate threat? Wow. I wish I only had to take on a challenging project every two years.
In contrast, let’s take a look at Congressman Perriello (D-VA). This is a guy who barely won in the last election and he has refused to play it safe. In fact, after last week’s health care vote, his spokesperson said, "A lot of the political pundits and all the conventional wisdom is saying that this is going to cost him the election next year…. He didn't come to Congress to get re-elected." He came to Congress to take on the really, really hard issues.
Seems to me that serving in elected office is about working through the tough issues for the greater good. I don’t believe that Senator McCaskill came to Congress just to name post offices. She came to make a difference. This is the moment to do just that.
I know the Senator knows that. I know our President knows that. President Obama is the one who said, "I'm not going to kick these problems down the road for another four years, another eight years, to the next president, the next generation…. We're going to tackle 'em now."
P.S. One of the many good things about Senator McCaskill is that she responds to the public. She is an active twitter user and you can find her @clairecmc. I encourage you to let her know that we can’t give up. Congress must rise to the occasion or we will all face the consequences.
Follow Heather Taylor-Miesle on Twitter: www.twitter.com/NRDC_AF
