LOS ANGELES : Beilenson to Attend Earth Summit
Rep. Anthony C. Beilenson (D-Los Angeles) will leave Washington on Thursday to attend this week’s Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro as part of an official congressional delegation.
Beilenson is one of about 13 House members who will observe the conference and meet with elected officials and environmental leaders from around the world.
Beilenson, who had been critical of President Bush’s initial reluctance to participate in the environmental conclave, was invited to the conference by House Speaker Thomas S. Foley, said a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles lawmaker.
Rep. George Miller (D-Martinez), chairman of the Interior and Insular Affairs Committee, will head the House delegation.
The Senate is sending a separate group.
“One of the clear messages that Congressman Miller is going down there with is that the U.S., under the Bush Administration, is doing everything it can to undermine environmental protection in the United States and has done a great deal to undermine any international agreements that people hope to see in Rio,” said Daniel Weiss, a spokesman for Miller.
“One of the purposes for going is to indicate that the President does not represent the only view in the United States.”
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