WASHINGTON, D.C.—U.S. Senator John Thune (R-South Dakota), chairman of the Senate Republican Conference, today made the following statement in response to President Obama's recent one-sided agreement with Chinese President Xi Jinping on carbon emissions:

"President Obama's agreement with China is a bad deal for hardworking American families and promises to deliver a gut punch to middle-class families harder and sooner than he vowed before the election. China has promised to potentially, maybe, possibly start reducing emissions after 2030, but this is a non-binding agreement and there is little reason to believe China will blunt its economic ambitions and comply. Over that period, China will build as many coal-burning power plants as possible while President Obama runs ours out of business, slashing American jobs and driving up energy prices." 

China is the world's largest emitter of carbon dioxide and is currently building one new coal-fired power plant nearly every week.

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