POLITICO

Lindsey Graham wants to 'pause' on climate bill

By GLENN THRUSH | 5/7/10 10:52 AM EDT
Updated: 5/7/10 3:27 PM EDT
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Sen. Lindsey Graham, the top Republican negotiator on a bipartisan climate change bill, said in a statement Friday morning that 'it would be wise to pause the process and reassess where we stand.' AP

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) has gone from fence-sitting to urging Democrats to scrap climate change legislation before the midterms — saying the Gulf oil spill warrants a pause in the effort.

And his two former bargaining partners — Sens. John Kerry (D-Mass.) and Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) - are planning to push forward without him, introducing a bill on Wednesday even though Graham's comments significantly reduce the chances the landmark legislation will be passed before November.

“As I have previously indicated, a serious debate on energy legislation is significantly compromised with the cynical politics of comprehensive immigration reform hanging over the Senate," Graham said in a statement Friday morning.

"In addition to immigration, we now have to deal with a catastrophic oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, which creates new policy and political challenges not envisioned in our original discussions. In light of this, I believe it would be wise to pause the process and reassess where we stand.â€