Gore and Gingrich spar at Capitol over impact of addressing warming

WASHINGTON

“It is a challenge that this Congress must rise to,” Gore said. “I wish I could find the words to get past the partisan divide that both sides have contributed to. … It shouldn’t be partisan. It should be something we do together in our national interest.”

But former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, R-Ga., argued that the Democratic proposal to reduce greenhouse gases would “punish the American people” by imposing higher energy costs and threatening jobs.

“This bill is an energy tax,” Gingrich said. “An energy tax punishes senior citizens, it punishes rural Americans, if you use electricity it punishes you. This bill will increase your cost of living and may kill your job.”

AP