Top Georgia Republicans unite against federal climate bill

The doom-and-gloom outlook contrasts sharply with Democratic optimism. Stacey Abrams praised Biden for pursuing legislation that would institute “for the first time, a true climate action plan in the U.S.” Sens. Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock both back the plan.

The package is a cornerstone of Biden’s economic platform. It includes an array of energy and climate proposals, health care subsidies and proposals to lower prescription drug prices worth hundreds of billions of dollars. It’s set to be financed by a new minimum tax on some large profitable corporations.

All 50 members of the Republican caucus in the Senate are expected to vote against the bill, and top GOP figures quickly attacked the measure as a tax increase that would increase government spending and undermine an already shaky economy.

Several estimates from outside groups suggest the measure wouldn’t amount to a hefty tax hike. It would raise most of the new tax revenue by imposing the minimum tax on large firms that use credits and loopholes to reduce their rates.

Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.) walks into a vote on Capitol Hill in Washington, July 28, 2022. Now that Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) is on board, the Arizona Democrat has emerged as the final holdout on Democrats’ domestic agenda. (Haiyun Jiang/The New York Times)

Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.) walks into a vote on Capitol Hill in Washington, July 28, 2022. Now that Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) is on board, the Arizona Democrat has emerged as the final holdout on Democrats’ domestic agenda. (Haiyun Jiang/The New York Times)

The GOP opposition means that Democrats will likely have to navigate the bill through a complicated budget reconciliation process with no votes to spare. They also must unite their own caucus: U.S. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona still hasn’t endorsed the plan.

The proposal includes tax credits to increase production of renewable energy, electric vehicles and new sources of fuels to move away from carbon-based sources. It also offers farmers new incentives to shift from nitrogen fertilizer, a contributor to climate change.

Loeffler, who lost to Warnock in last year’s runoff, said farmers should be concerned the measure threatens “fossil fuel dominance” in Georgia’s agriculture industry.

“It takes resources from farmers and tries to convert them into Green New Deal farmers,” she said. “And it does nothing to address the rampant spending that’s driving up prices in this country.”