SHARP Update: House Minority Leader John Boehner

There have been extensive updates to house Minority Leader, John Boehner’s (R-OH) page on SEA’s SHARP Network that are worth checking out. If you make any changes to the SHARP that you think are worth highlighting on this page, let SEA know.

Teaching Evolution/Intelligent Design
In a letter to the Ohio School Board after the passage of No Child Left Behind in 2001, Rep. Boehner wrote along with Rep. Steve Chabot (R-OH) that “[i]t’s important that the implementation of these science standards not be used to censor debate on controversial issues in science, including Darwin’s theory of evolution. Science is neither religion nor philosophy. Many people may draw religious or philosophical implications from science, but those implication are best drawn outside the science classroom. Students should be allowed to hear the scientific arguments on more than one side of a controversial topic. Censorship of opposing points of view retards true scholarship and prevents students from developing their critical thinking skills.”

Fuel Economy Standards
On the radio show “America’s Business with Mike Hambrick” (sound file), Representative Boehner expressed his opposition to increasing fuel economy standards, saying “When it comes to CAFE, I think the proposal that was passed in the Senate, that’s being sponsored by Miss Pelosi and Mr. Markey from Massachusetts will wreck America’s economy…I think that’s very bad for our country.”

Nuclear Power
During consideration of H.R. 6, Boehner admonished (YouTube video) the lack of debate on nuclear energy, saying “And my goodness why won’t we talk about nuclear energy on the floor of the House of Representatives of the United States when we know that it’s the cleanest source of fuel for our future?”

Renewable Energy
In a press release issued on the day of the vote on H.R. 6, Boehner criticized the ‘No-Energy Bill’ as “containing plenty of pork, higher taxes, and a maze of new federal government regulations, but it creates no new energy to provide American families with relief from soaring energy prices. In fact, it leaves more than 100 million American families in the cold, facing the highest home-heating prices in history this winter and jeopardizes millions of jobs as American factories consider closing their doors because of skyrocketing energy costs.”

Environment
When choosing members for the Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming in March 2007, Boehner was criticized for refusing to give a Republican seat to Representative Gilchrest (R-MD), the chair of the House Climate Change caucus, because he refused to deny that humans were the cause of climate change.

Stem Cell Research
Representative Boehner supports federal funding for adult stem cells. In a June 2007 statement, he praised the ‘potential’ of adult stem cells compared to the “controversial and non-productive results of embryonic stem cells.”

Now, let’s see some updates to Majority Leader Steny Hoyer’s page!