Americans for Prosperity Applauds Robin Smith

Americans for Prosperity Applauds U.S. House Candidate Robin Smith

- Signs No Climate Tax Pledge-

WASHINGTON - The free-market grassroots group Americans for Prosperity (AFP) today applauded U.S. House Candidate Robin Smith (TN-3) for signing the group’s “No Climate TaxPledge.” By doing so, Smith joins over 235 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 citizensand businesses,” said AFP Policy Director Phil Kerpen. “We encourage all of Tennessee’s elected officials and candidates to sign the pledge.”

Prominent signers include: U.S. Senators Jim Inhofe and John Thune; U.S. House Minority Leader John Boehner, and Lt. Govs. Bill Bolling (VA)and Peter Kinder (MO).

Cap-and-trade took its first step toward enactment recently when the U.S. House narrowly passed the Waxman-Markey energy bill, which escaped the lower chamber by a scant seven votes, despite significant bipartisan opposition.  However, key Democratic senators have expressed opposition to attempting to pass a cap-and-trade this year.  President Obama has made no secret of his support for the bill, which would be the largest tax increase in American history.  The non-partisan Congressional Budget Office has 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.

Americans for Prosperity (AFP) is the nation’s premier grassroots organization committed to advancing every individual’s right to economic freedom and opportunity. AFP believes reducing the size and scope of government is the best safeguard to ensuring individual productivity and prosperity for all Americans. AFP educates and engages citizens in support of restraining state and federal government growth, and returning government to its constitutional limits. For more information, visit www.americansforprosperity.org