The American People Don't Buy Conservative Clean Energy Lies

For nearly a year now, conservatives have staked their opposition to clean energy reform on false economic arguments intended to scare the American people. 

To hear most Republicans tell it, efforts to reduce carbon pollution and achieve energy independence represent a "job killing scheme" and a "massive" tax increase.  These claims have been refuted time and time again by Media Matters Action and other independent fact-checking sites. 

Fortunately, the American people are -- or, depending on how you look at it, are not -- paying attention to the GOP's lies.  A new poll shows that a plurality of American believe that clean energy legislation before Congress would create jobs and boost the economy:

In an Associated Press-Stanford University poll, 40 percent said U.S. action to slow global warming in the future would create jobs. Slightly more, 46 percent, said it would boost the economy.

By contrast, less than a third said curbing climate change would hurt the economy and result in fewer jobs, a message Republican members of Congress plan to take to an international global warming conference in Copenhagen this week.

Indeed, the most recent proposal in the Senate, which is cosponsored by Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), would create millions of American green jobs while taking a big step toward energy independence.  It's time for conservatives to drop their fear-mongering campaign and start putting the welfare of the American people ahead of the profits of the oil industry.