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Key 2010 House Climate Races

by Brad Johnson, ThinkProgress Wonk Room Climate Editor

There are fifteen top House races in which a strong supporter for action to reduce global warming pollution is being challenged by a denier of the threat of global warming. (See the top Senate climate races here.)

The Republicans in these races not only stand against comprehensive climate policy, like nearly all the rest of their party, they proudly proclaim that the overwhelming evidence of the threat of greenhouse gas pollution is a “hoax,” a “religion,” and “crap.” The sitting representatives, many in conservative districts, are climate activists who were the swing votes in favor of the Waxman-Markey American Clean Energy and Security Act in 2009, recognizing that our economy and environment are mutually threatened by our dependence on fossil fuels. These fifteen races between climate heroes and anti-science deniers this November (with the 538 estimated likelihood of a Republican pickup as of September 16) are:

86% VA-5 Rep. Tom Perriello v Robert Hurt84% MD-1 Rep. Frank Kratovil v Andy Harris72% CO-4 Rep. Betsy Markey v Cory Gardner72% NM-2 Rep. Harry Teague v Steve Pearce67% NY-19 Rep. John Hall v Nan Hayworth66% MI-7 Rep. Mark Schauer v. Tim Walberg63% PA-11 Rep. Paul Kanjorski v Lou Barletta63% IN-9 Rep. Baron Hill v Todd Young61% NH-1 Rep. Carol Shea-Porter v Frank Guinta56% IA-3 Rep. Leonard Boswell v Brad Zaun56% CA-11 Rep. Jerry McNerney v David Harmer55% IL-14 Rep. Bill Foster v Randy Hultgren40% FL-22 Rep. Ron Klein v Allen West26% IL-17 Rep. Phil Hare v Bobby Schilling21% NM-1 Rep. Martin Heinrich v Jon Barela

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RACE (% GOP pickup)CLIMATE HEROCLIMATE DENIERVA-5 86%Tom PerrielloRobert Hurt”This is the challenge of our time. The jobs opportunity, the national security challenge, the scientific challenge of our era.””There are bills like cap-and-trade, which is the greatest example of excess in environmental policy. Cap-and-trade is not a bill that will do anything except harm people. It will kill jobs.”MD-1 84%Frank KratovilAndy Harris”I’m proud to be fighting in Congress to protect the bay, encourage a new green energy economy, and finally take real steps to reduce our dependence on foreign oil.””The job-killing policies of Nancy Pelosi and Congressional Democrats — like the so-called economic Stimulus, the Health Care takeover, and the Cap and Trade Energy Tax — do nothing but place the debt of today onto the children of tomorrow.”CO-4 72%Betsy MarkeyCory Gardner”I think we need to work to advance renewable energy standards that make sense — that create jobs, reduce our crippling dependence on hostile foreign regimes for oil, and protect our environment for future generations — with little to no cost for the average energy consumer in the 4th CD.””I think the climate is changing, but I don’t believe humans are causing that change to the extent that’s been in the news. . . The cap and trade will devastate the economy.”NM-2 72%Rep. Harry TeagueSteve Pearce”Crack down on global warming and protect the the environment that our children and their children will inherit.” “I think we ought to take a look at whatever the group is that measures all this, the IPCC, they don’t even believe the crap.”NY-19 67%John HallNan Hayworth”It’s time for Congress to move straight ahead with the issue of global warming, and I’m confident that significant progress can be achieved.””Recent controversies regarding the scientific evidence of global warming indicate that we must regard any claims with skepticism, which is what true scientists are supposed to do. Pending the presentation of a more iron-clad case for man’s role in global warming, it’s still a reasonable goal to utilize energy wisely, to conserve resources, and to minimize pollution.” “I am opposed to cap-and-trade. It would more accurately be called cap-and-tax, and it is a bad idea for several reasons: it sets unrealistic goals that would require sacrifices that Americans cannot sustain, undermining our economy; it puts into place a complex system of carbon-emission credits that will unfairly favor certain industries and special interests; and the cost of the credits system will make life unbearably expensive for our consumers and increase the cost of our goods.”MI-7 66%Mark SchauerTim Walberg”Restore science and innovation as the keys to new American-made technology, preventing and treating disease, and tackling urgent national challenges like climate change and dependence on foreign oil.””What I’m saying is, when I read science, I read scientists, editors who police equal on both sides that say there’s a cycle, that significant warming that’s produced by human involvement and not just simple matter of fact natural currents that take place in the cycle, then I read on the other side an equal number at the very least that say just the very opposite — that this something that’s gone on for eons, that we go through these cycles.”PA-11 63%Paul KanjorskiLou Barletta”We need to begin the process of decreasing greenhouse gas emissions, creating clean energy jobs in America, and reducing our dependence on foreign oil.””The proposed cap and trade bill could place punishing taxes on American businesses, stifling the economic recovery and jeopardizing millions of jobs.”IN-9 63%Rep. Baron HillTodd Young”Ending our dependence on foreign oil and using renewable energy to help fight global warming will make our nation stronger.”“With the possible exception of Tiger Woods, nothing has had a worse year than global warming. We have discovered that a good portion of the science used to justify “climate change” was a hoax perpetrated by leftist ideologues with an agenda.”NH-1 61%Carol Shea-PorterFrank Guinta”I’m one of the majority of Americans who believe the science.” “I voted for my children’s future and yours, and I am proud that this Congress said yes to a better future for all Americans.””One year ago this Saturday, Carol Shea-Porter (NH-1) joined Nancy Pelosi and her liberal allies in the House in a close vote to pass the Waxman-Markey National Energy Tax, also known as cap-and-trade. This scheme is designed to tax homeowners and small businesses based upon their energy consumption with the hope that higher taxes will reduce energy use.”IA-2 56%Rep. Leonard BoswellBrad Zaun”I believe the science is clear: carbon dioxide emissions are contributing to unprecedented climate changes. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has warned repeatedly that unless the industrial world acts soon, projected increases in emissions over the next fifty years will lead to drastic ecological changes, endangering countless species and human health.””I question global warming.”CA-11 56%Rep. Jerry McNerneyDavid Harmer”Climate change is one of the most important issues facing our country. In fact, if left unchecked, climate change will seriously harm our environment, our economy, and our way of life, threatening our ecosystem and the availability of fresh water for drinking and agriculture.”“Global warming is more a religion than a science.”IL-14 55%Rep. Bill FosterRandy Hultgren”We must aggressively combat climate change, reduce our dependence on foreign oil and promote cleaner and more economical sources of energy.”“I don’t believe we have a significant impact on climate change.”FL-22 40%Rep. Ron KleinAllen West”This bill will strengthen our national security, lower energy costs, create jobs, and reduce our impact on global warming.”“If we could just get President Obama and former Vice-President Al Gore to apologize to God reference “man-made global warming/climate change” perhaps we would not all be freezing, even in South Florida!”IL-17 26%Phil HareBobby Schilling”The overwhelming scientific consensus is that global warming is real, it is a threat, and a failure to act soon will leave our children in a very dangerous world.”“He doesn’t believe in global warming, putting him at odds with almost every major climate change expert in the world but in good standing with his base.”NM-1 21%Rep. Martin HeinrichJon Barela”This bipartisan group of wildlife and conservation leaders share my strong belief that we must do more to fight climate change and protect our planet for generations to come.” “If you look at the recent snowfall in the East Coast and certainly our winter, you have the ebbs and flows of climate change, and that’s just simply how how things have worked for the millennia, and for the eons.”