FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 10, 2009
Contact: Phil Kerpen or James Valvo (202) 349-5880

WASHINGTON-The free-market grassroots group Americans for Prosperity (AFP) today applauded U.S. Senator John Thune for signing the group’s “No Climate Tax Pledge.” By doing so, Thune joins over 190 lawmakers on the federal, state and local levels pledging to “oppose legislation relating to climate change that includes a net increase in government revenue.”

“The one thing elected officials should be able to agree on is that global warming shouldn’t be used as an excuse to hike taxes on citizens and businesses.” said AFP Policy Director Phil Kerpen. “We encourage all of South Dakota’s elected officials and candidates for elected office to sign the pledge.”

Senator Thune is the vice chairmen of the Senate Republican Conference and the first member of the Senate leadership to sign the pledge. All of the Republican House leaders have signed the pledge including Leader Boehner, Whip Cantor, and Chairmen Pence and Price. Other prominent signers include Senators Brownback, Roberts, Vitter, Wicker and Coburn. All signers can be viewed by clicking here.

Federal cap and trade legislation took its first steps toward passage recently when the Waxman-Markey energy bill was voted out of the House Energy and Commerce Committee. President Obama has made no secret of his support for a cap-and-trade scheme, which would amount to the largest tax increase in American history. The non-partisan Congressional Budget Office recently scored the plan as an $846 billion increase in federal revenue, a burden that will be borne by taxpayers and consumers for years to come.

“Using the guise of climate change to transfer dollars from hard-working citizens to bureaucratic big government is unacceptable,” said Kerpen. “Regardless of their stance on global warming, this should be common ground for all of our elected officials at all levels of government.”

The pledge is available online at www.NoClimateTax.com. AFP does not endorse candidates. All elected officials and candidates are encouraged to sign the pledge and go on the record in opposition to using the climate change issue to increase taxes and grow the size of government.