Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., asserted that the Kerry-Boxer climate change bill would deliberately hurt the U.S. economy, The Hill reported. In saying that the bill "deliberately kills jobs, and it deliberately makes Americans poor," Alexander called for "presidential leadership" from President Obama on climate change. Alexander pointed to his proposal for the construction of 100 new nuclear plants, establishment of a massive fleet of electric vehicles, expanded offshore energy production, and clean energy research as an alternative to the Kerry-Boxer bill.
While Alexander said he accepted a scientific consensus "that climate change is real and that humans have probably caused most of the recent warning," Alexander added that "my problem is with the solution" to the problem. He hoped "to see good hearings on the bill we have" to produce enough information on the bill to improve it in markup sessions. Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., responded to Alexander by stating: "The Clean Energy Jobs and American Power Act is specifically designed to move us to a clean energy economy, create millions of jobs here in America, reduce our dependence on foreign oil, and protect our children from pollution."