Climate change draws senators north to Alaska

Two senators with presidential ambitions are planning a trip to Alaska in two weeks to see first hand the consequences of global climate change in the high latitudes, Alaska's two senators told reporters Monday. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., the co-author of a bill to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases blamed for global warming, and Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., are expected to tour Alaska and northwestern Canada, where permafrost is melting, glaciers are in rapid retreat and coastal villages are threatened with increasing erosion. Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., are also slated to make the trip, tentatively scheduled for Aug. 16 to 19.