December 4, 2018:

Time to put politics aside and fight climate change

With the recent horrific fires in Butte County, many of us are becoming increasingly alarmed about climate change. When I saw my preschool-aged children in their face masks, I was struck with the realization that this is their future. When my son asks, “Mama, when can we see a polar bear?” the despair I feel for him is like a rock in my stomach.

But there is hope. Historic climate legislation was introduced recently that will put a price on carbon emissions. The Climate Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act was introduced by a bipartisan group of U.S. members of Congress — Reps. Francis Rooney, Brian Fitzpatrick, Ted Deutch, Charlie Crist and John Delaney.

This legislation, if passed, would reduce U.S. carbon emissions by 33 percent over the next 10 years. This kind of emissions reduction is critical if we hope to stave off the most frightening effects of global warming.

As a member of the House of Representatives’ Safe Climate Caucus, our representative, Jared Huffman, is already working to fight climate change, and I urge him to do whatever is in his power to support this bill. It’s time to put aside partisan politics and move forward with solutions to give a safe future to our children.

— Betsy Kelly, Fairfax