Urge climate change talks

Elder statesmen of the Republican Party have proposed a national carbon tax and dividend to address climate change. It’s a concept that The Spokesman-Review endorsed as worthy of consideration in their recent editorial.

For so many years, Republicans have been, at best, obstructionists when it comes to engaging in a serious conversation about climate change. We applaud their taking ownership of climate solutions by authoring a concrete plan that addresses climate change based upon conservative-based, free-market principles. While they don’t admit that climate change is real, they argue that the stakes are so high that they offer their proposal as an insurance policy in case the scientists are right.

If they are ultimately able to move their party off of their present platform position of climate change denial, they will have succeeded. The authors are elder statesmen of their party who no longer face re-election. Will their message convince active party members to change their approach? We hope so. Democracy doesn’t work without two parties engaging in dialog that results in legislative compromise that begins to tackle difficult problems.

People of all political persuasions need to encourage Congress to start the conversation in earnest.

John Covert

Spokane