Obama peddles climate bill to Senate

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By David Eldridge

President Obama, handed a crucial victory Friday night with the House of Representatives' approval of a sweeping climate-change bill, urged the Senate on Saturday to disregard "misinformation" and pass the legislation.

"Don't believe the misinformation out there that suggests there is somehow a contradiction between investing in clean energy and economic growth," the president said in his weekly Saturday address. "It's just not true.

"We cannot be afraid of the future," he said. "And we must not be prisoners of the past."

The bill, which passed the House by a 219-212 vote, would take effect in 2012. It is intended to reduce carbon-dioxide pollution, require increased usage of renewable energy and require that consumer products be more energy efficient.

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• House passes landmark climate change bill

President Obama, handed a crucial victory Friday night with the House of Representatives' approval of a sweeping climate-change bill, urged the Senate on Saturday to disregard "misinformation" and pass the legislation.

"Don't believe the misinformation out there that suggests there is somehow a contradiction between investing in clean energy and economic growth," the president said in his weekly Saturday address. "It's just not true.

"We cannot be afraid of the future," he said. "And we must not be prisoners of the past."

The bill, which passed the House by a 219-212 vote, would take effect in 2012. It is intended to reduce carbon-dioxide pollution, require increased usage of renewable energy and require that consumer products be more energy efficient.

The climate-change debate now shifts to the Senate, where Majority Leader Harry Reid, Nevada Democrat, wants to bring a bill to the floor by mid-September.