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Whitfield Opposes Climate Change Bill WASHINGTON, DC (WEKU) - Republican Congressman Ed Whitfield says he wants to change a proposed climate change bill to reduce the impact on Midwestern states. The bill is before the House Energy Committee. Republicans are threatening to bog it down with hundreds of amendments.

The bill would put a price on greenhouse gas emissions to encourage consumers to choose clean energy over fossil fuels. Congressman Whitfield says it will kill jobs and cripple the economy.

"Even though I am not going to vote for the bill, I do think it's important to improve it to help lower our electricity cost, and we know we can best do that by utilizing coal," Whitfield said.

Whitfield voted for an amendment that would provide cheap loans to clean energy, including clean coal and nuclear power. And he says he wants to do more for coal and nuclear.

Whitfield says "There are all sorts of alternative energy that we need to explore. We think they should be explored over wind and solar. Throughout the Midwest, you really can't produce enough by wind power or solar to provide the needs for electricity."

The committee is scheduled to vote on the climate change bill before the end of the week. Not a single Republican is likely to vote yes, and some Democrats are still undecided. © Copyright 2012, WEKU