Watt, Coble on opposite ends of green spectrum

By Karissa Minn

kminn@salisburypost.com

The League of Conservation Voters has given extreme and opposite scores to U.S. Reps. Mel Watt and Howard Coble for their environmental records this year.

The group's 2009 National Environmental Scorecard includes 11 Senate and 13 House votes from the first session of the 111th Congress related to clean energy and climate, as well as other environmental issues such as public lands, water and wildlife conservation.

Watt was given a score of 100 percent, indicating a "pro-environment" stance on every vote scored by the league, while Coble received a score of 0 percent.

Watt, a Democrat representing the 12th District, said he typically doesn't pay attention to ratings from interest groups.

"I'm honored that they would have given me a 100 percent rating, but I don't generally worry about what kind of rating I'm going to get from somebody," Watt said. "I try to do what I think is in the interest of my constituents, in the public's interest and in nation's interest."Watt said he is concerned about environmental issues like global warming, which he says is a serious problem that needs to be addressed.

"I think we need to be recycling and conserving and doing whatever we can do to protect the environment," Watt said. "It can't always be the No. 1 compelling factor in how you vote on an issue, but it certainly should always be in back of your mind."

One of the votes scored by the conservation group was the American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009, which Watt supported. It proposes measures to promote energy independence, as well as a cap and trade system to limit the amount of greenhouse gases emitted by companies.

Ed McDonald, spokesman for Coble, said the Republican representative has voted against legislation like the American Clean Energy and Security Act out of concern for the economy.

"Clearly, that bill is going to be devastating to our economy in a time when we're facing 10 percent unemployment nationally," McDonald said. "It's going to put all these crippling additions onto businesses who are trying to create jobs."

Coble instead supports an initiative called the New Manhattan Project for Energy Independence, which proposes the creation of a commission to help make the U.S. 50 percent energy independent in 10 years and 100 percent energy independent in 20 years.

McDonald said Coble has supported several other environmentally friendly bills in the past, but his low score this year wasn't surprising.

"This group has a very hard left environmental agenda, and we just don't agree with it," McDonald said. "Congressman Coble is a strong supporter of protecting the environment, but doing it in a sensible and rational way."

He said that the opinions of voters in the 6th District matter more to Coble than those of an interest group.

U.S. Rep. Larry Kissell, a Democrat who represents the 8th District that includes Cabarrus County, received a score of 79 percent from the league. Republican U.S. Sen. Richard Burr was given a 9 percent score, while U.S. Sen. Kay Hagan, a Democrat, received a 100 percent score.The average House score in 2009 for North Carolina was 58 percent and the average Senate score was 55 percent.

For more information and a detailed list of scores, visit www.lcv.org/scorecard.