Jim Martin: “Supporting harsh, extreme government regulations that directly put America’s elderly in peril is neither Christian, nor compassionate. Left-wing group does not speak for moderate and conservative Evangelicals, who reject the lawless EPA power grab.”
(Alexandria, Virginia) — America’s largest center-right seniors group today issued a statement in response to the Evangelical Environmental Network (EEN), a left-wing eco organization that claims the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) severe Clean Power Plant (CPP) regulations conform to the values and moral agenda of the Evangelical community. 60 Plus Chairman Jim Martin issued the following response:
“60 Plus strongly supports, and is supported by, millions of American Evangelicals, who play a critical role in shaping the political and moral agenda of our nation. We share in the foundational belief that faith commands us to be good stewards of our environment. But within this belief we join with the moderate and conservative Evangelicals, who draw the line at embracing extreme government regulations such as the EPA’s CPP. The CPP fails to provide any environmental benefit, yet succeeds in pushing millions of our most economically vulnerable — including 70% of U.S. seniors on fixed incomes — into financial, physical and emotional peril.
“The facts are not in dispute. Under CPP the world’s biggest polluters, including China, are allowed to continue rapidly increasing their use of fossil fuels, while causing energy prices here at home to skyrocket, devastating the already precarious financial position of America’s working poor and tens of millions of seniors on fixed incomes. Studies show seniors are already skipping meals, doctor appointments and medication to make ends meet. This further increase due to the CPP will be the knockout blow that will put many more in the emergency room, or in the morgue.
“The EEN has an agenda that puts extreme environmental activism over all else. Given their claims to Christian beliefs, I would strongly suggest they pay more attention to the 10 Commandments, particularly the Commandment which states ‘honor they father and thy mother.’ There is no justification whatsoever to support a government policy that guarantees to harm our elderly parents and grandparents while giving a green light to the world’s biggest polluters.
“Let’s not forget that America’s current seniors grew-up during a time where environmental protections were practically non-existent compared to today. Due to their actions, their civic and consumer choices, and their votes, America’s seniors brought about tremendous environmental improvements in the areas of clean water, clean air, the removal of lead and mercury from our food, and hundreds of other positive changes on behalf of future generations too numerous to mention. Now is not the time to listen to false prophets, who preach phony environmental gospels that dishonor and outright injure America’s elderly.”
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