[Mb-civic] John Kerry's environmental credentials

[ean at sbcglobal.net]

I'm sure all of you are aware of GW Bush's horrible record regarding 
environmental protection--the worst ever.  However, in the interest of 
reminding us that "There is a big difference" I am forwarding a Sierra Club 
article about John Kerry's environmental credentials, followed by the Sierra 
Club endorsement.  I would say that Kerry's hugest environmental failing is 
his support of "free trade" agreements, but the following clarifies the need for 
sane Americans of every political stripe to do whatever they can to help John 
become President...and then starting the next day pressure him to make the 
moves that will give the human race a chance to survive...


Kerry ‘Gets It’
John Kerry, who helped organize Massachusetts’ first Earth Day, earns the 
Sierra Club’s endorsement
By Tom Valtin
http://www.sierraclub.org/planet/200405/kerry.asp
 
"This year the choice for president could not be clearer," said Sierra Club 
President Larry Fahn, announcing in May the Club’s endorsement of John 
Kerry for president. "We are faced with a choice between the most anti-
environmental president ever and a true friend who would bring to the office a 
dedication to improving all issues facing the environment. The past four years 
have witnessed an outright assault on 30 years of environmental progress, 
selection of staunchly anti-environmental judges, backroom deals with 
polluting industries—the list goes on."

The Club’s endorsement surprised few Sierra Club activists, who are by and 
large more familiar with the Bush administration’s environmental 
depredations than the average American. But even Club members may not 
realize the extent to which Kerry has been an environmental leader 
throughout his career in public service. In 1970, fresh back from service in 
Vietnam, he gave some of the first speeches of his career at Massachusetts’ 
first Earth Day, which he helped organize. As Massachusetts lieutenant 
governor he co-chaired the 1983 Acid Rain Task Force and issued the Call 
for Action Against Acid Rain Report, at the time one of the most 
comprehensive analyses of the damage caused by acid rain in this country.

As a senator, Kerry has consistently supported the Sierra Club’s agenda; the 
League of Conservation Voters this year gave Kerry a 96.5 percent career 
rating, the highest LCV rating of any presidential nominee ever from a major 
party. He has been a Senate leader on fuel efficiency, led the charge against 
the Bush administration’s attempts to allow oil drilling in the Arctic National 
Wildlife Refuge, and has strongly opposed the nominations of anti-
environmental candidates for judicial and federal agency appointments. Kerry 
has championed legislation supporting Endangered Species Act protections, 
opposed efforts to open national monuments to drilling, voted to strengthen 
public lands protections, and opposed the Bush administration’s attempts to 
weaken Clean Air and Clean Water Act protections.

Kerry advocates removing the incentives in federal regulations and tax policy 
that encourage sprawl, and he favors restoring the Superfund Act’s "polluter 
pays" trust fund to clean up hazardous waste sites. He has promoted an 
energy policy that would reduce our dependence on oil, increase our energy 
efficiency, and increase the amount of clean, renewable energy used to 
generate electricity. In 1997 Kerry traveled to Kyoto to promote the climate 
control accords that President Bush subsequently shunned, and he has 
stated that as president he would work to re-establish the United States as a 
world leader on environmental policy.

The Sierra Club’s Political Committee sent an environmental questionnaire to 
all of the presidential candidates earlier this year, and interviewed the seven 
Democratic contenders who returned the questionnaires. (President Bush did 
not return his.) "Senator Kerry had an amazing grasp of the issues," reported 
Fahn. "This guy really gets it."

--
http://www.sierraclub.org/pressroom/presidential_endorsement/factsheet_ker
ry .asp

SIERRA CLUB ENDORSES KERRY FOR PRESIDENT

Says Kerry Will Protect America's Health and Heritage

SAN FRANCISCO - The Sierra Club - the nation's oldest, largest and most 
influential environmental group - today endorsed Senator John Kerry for 
President of the United States, citing his outstanding leadership in safe-
guarding America's air, water and public lands. 

"John Kerry will provide the environmental leadership that has been sorely 
missing in the Bush White House," said Sierra Club President Larry Fahn. 
"His commitment to environmental progress stands in stark contrast to the 
Bush administration's all-out assault on the environment and its record of 
putting polluting corporations before the American public's health and safety.

"John Kerry has spent his entire career promoting real solutions aimed at 
ensuring that America's air, water, and natural resources are protected for 
future generations."

Kerry has demonstrated environmental leadership throughout his career in 
public service, from helping organize Massachusetts' first Earth Day in 1970 
to opposing the Bush administration's efforts to dismantle environmental 
gains made over the last century. Highlights of Kerry's environmental record 
include:

Advocated strict enforcement of the Clean Air Act and Clean Water Act, and 
opposed Bush administration efforts to weaken the laws in order to let 
polluters put more dangerous toxics into our air and water; 
Advocated restoration of Superfund's "polluter pays" trust fund to ensure that 
polluters, not ordinary taxpayers, pay to clean up abandoned toxic waste 
sites; 
Led the charge against the Bush administration's attempts to allow oil drilling 
in the pristine Arctic National Wildlife Refuge; 
Championed an energy plan that increases fuel economy to reduce the 
nation's dependence on oil and supports the development of clean, energy-
saving technologies and renewable energy to reduce our dependence on 
other polluting sources of energy; 
And, advocated for the United States to take the lead in international efforts 
to cut global warming pollution, reverse ozone depletion, protect tropical rain 
forests, preserve biological diversity and press for sustainable development.
"John Kerry's record on the environment is impressive by any measure and 
reveals a sincere personal passion for the issue," Sierra Club Executive 
Director Carl Pope said. "He understands that there is a better way than the 
Bush administration's alliance with corporate polluters. With Kerry as 
President, we could be sure that America's health and heritage are 
protected." 

The endorsement was decided by volunteer members who serve on the 
Club's political committee and Board of Directors. Following the 
announcement, the Sierra Club will mobilize more than 700,000 members to 
talk to their friends and neighbors about supporting Kerry in November.

"One of our biggest challenges is to educate the American public about the 
Bush administration's dismal environmental record," Fahn said. "Now, 
thousands of Sierra Club members in every state will be volunteering their 
efforts to tell voters about the clear choice in this election. They will be 
encouraging all Americans who care about the environment to vote for John 
Kerry in November."

To learn more about why the Sierra Club endorsed John Kerry, please visit 
our website at: 
http://www.sierraclub.org/pressroom/presidential_endorsement/

###


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Action is the antidote to despair.  ----Joan Baez
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