Topics in the News: Paris Accord
Joe Biden on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Apr 22, 2021)
FactCheck:US rejoined world in GHG reduction, not vice-versa
Biden promised to persuade "the leaders of the major carbon-emitting nations to join the US in making more ambitious national pledges." Biden led a climate world summit where he committed "that the US would cut its greenhouse gas [GHG] emissions in half,
from 2005 levels, by the end of the decade" (NPR 4/22). But some fact-checking:Biden didn't persuade other countries to "join the US": In 2015, 191 countries signed the Paris Accord committing to GHG reductions. Trump withdrew the US entirely in 2017,
reducing US commitment to zero.
Looking at the numbers, the US had committed in 2015 to a 26% domestic reduction in greenhouse gases by 2025 compared to 2005 levels. Biden committed to a 50% reduction by 2030--a comparable reduction rate. For
comparison, the EU committed to a 40% domestic GHG reduction by 2030 compared to 1990 levels--a much lower base level. In summary, Biden's action restored the US to what the world is already doing--the US joined the other nations, not vice-versa!
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Source: NPR/OnTheIssues FactCheck on Biden Administration promises
Donald Trump on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Feb 28, 2021)
Could have made a deal on Paris Accord but didn't want to
Joe Biden put the United States back into the very unfair and very costly Paris Climate Accord without negotiating a better deal. They wanted us so badly back in. I'll tell you they wanted us. I could have made an unbelievable deal and gone back in, but
I didn't want to do that. Surrendering millions of jobs and trillions of dollars to all of these other countries, almost all of them that were in the deal. So they have favorable treatment, we don't have favorable treatment.
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Source: Remarks by Pres. Trump at the 2021 CPAC Conference
Joe Biden on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Feb 4, 2021)
Day One: rejoined the Paris Climate Agreement
We've moved quickly to begin restoring American engagement internationally and earn back our leadership position, to catalyze global action on shared challenges. On day one, I signed the paperwork to rejoin the Paris Climate Agreement.
We're taking steps led by the example of integrating climate objectives across all of our diplomacy and raise the ambition of our climate targets.
That way, we can challenge other nations, other major emitters, to up the ante on their own commitments. I'll be hosting climate leaders' summit to address the climate crisis on Earth Day of this year.
America must lead in the face of this existential threat. And just as with the pandemic, it requires global cooperation.
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Source: Manchester Ink Link on 2020 New Hampshire Senate race
Donald Trump on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Oct 22, 2020)
The Paris Accord is not fair to U.S.
TRUMP: The [Paris Climate Accord], I took us out because we were going to have to spend trillions of dollars and we were treated very unfairly. When they put us in there, they did us a great disservice, they were going to take away our businesses. I will
not sacrifice tens of millions of jobs, thousands and thousands of companies because of the Paris Accord, it was so unfair. China doesn't kick in until 2030, Russia goes back to a low standard, and we kicked in right away.BIDEN: Climate change is an
existential threat to humanity. I was able to get environmental organizations--as well as people worried about jobs--to support my climate plan. Because it will create millions of new good paying jobs, we're going to take 4 million buildings and
2 million homes and retrofit them so they don't leak as much energy, saving hundreds of millions of barrels of oil in the process and creating significant number of jobs.
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Source: Third 2020 Presidential Debate, moderated by Kristen Welker
John Hickenlooper on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Oct 10, 2020)
Calls for 100% renewable energy by 2050
Q: Consider human-caused climate change a serious threat, and address by limiting output of greenhouse gases?John Hickenlooper: Yes. "The defining challenge of our time." Must face with "fierce sense of urgency." Would rejoin Paris Accord; calls for
100% renewable energy by 2050.
Corey Gardner: Mixed. "Humans are contributing to climate change." Will push for clean-tech investments, but voted against cutting carbon emissions from power plants.
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Source: CampusElect on 2020 Colorado Senate race
Kamala Harris on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Oct 7, 2020)
Carbon-neutral America by 2035
PENCE: Joe Biden and Kamala Harris would put us back in the Paris Climate Accord. They'd impose the Green New Deal, which would crush American energy and would crush American jobs. President Trump and I believe the progress we have made in a cleaner
environment has been happening because we have a free market economy. What's remarkable is the United States has reduced CO2 more than the countries that are still in the Paris Climate Accord, but we've done it through innovation.
HARRIS: Joe understands that the west coast is burning. Joe has seen and talked with the farmers in Iowa whose entire crops have been destroyed because of floods. Joe is about saying we're going to invest that in renewable energy, which is going to be
about the creation of millions of jobs. We will achieve net zero emissions by 2050, carbon neutral by 2035We will also reenter the Climate Agreement with pride.
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Source: 2020 Vice-Presidential Debate in Utah
Donald Trump on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Sep 29, 2020)
Rolled back Clean Power Plan; it increased energy prices
Q: When state officials in the West blamed the raging forest fires on climate change, you said, "I don't think the science knows." You have pulled the US out of the Paris Climate Accord. What do you believe about the science of climate change?TRUMP:
If you look at the Paris Accord, it was a disaster from our standpoint. And people are actually very happy about what's going on because our businesses are doing well.
Q: Do you believe that human greenhouse gas emissions contribute to the global
warming of this planet?
TRUMP: I think a lot of things do, but I think to an extent, yes. But I also think we have to do better management of our forest. Every year I get the call, "California's burning!" If you had good forest management,
you wouldn't be getting those calls.
Q: If you believe in the science of climate change, why have you rolled back the Obama Clean Power Plan which limited carbon emissions?
TRUMP: Because it was driving energy prices through the sky.
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Source: First 2020 Presidential Debate, moderated by Chris Wallace
Joe Biden on Paris Accord:
(Technology Sep 29, 2020)
Good-paying jobs via new green infrastructure
We can get to net zero, in terms of energy production, by 2035. Not only not costing people jobs, creating jobs, creating millions of good-paying jobs. Not 15 bucks an hour, but prevailing wage, by having a new infrastructure that in fact, is green.
And the first thing I will do, I will rejoin the Paris Accord, because with us out of it, look what's happening. It's all falling apart. The rainforests of Brazil are being torn down, are being ripped down.
More carbon is absorbed in that rainforest than every bit of carbon that's emitted in the United States. Instead of doing something about that, I would be gathering up and making sure we had the countries of the world coming up with $20 billion,
and say, "Here's $20 billion. Stop tearing down the forest. And If you don't, then you're going to have significant economic consequences." It's going to create thousands and millions of jobs. Good paying jobs.
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Source: First 2020 Presidential Debate, moderated by Chris Wallace
Joe Biden on Paris Accord:
(Environment Mar 15, 2020)
World should give $20B to Brazil to stop burning Amazon
The first thing that President Obama and I were summoned to the Defense Department for was [to hear their assessment that] the single greatest threat to our national security is climate change. Because as populations have to move because they can no
longer live where they are, because their islands are sinking--It causes war, it causes great migrations. They said that's the single biggest problem.In addition, I would immediately rejoin the Paris climate accord, which I helped put together.
I would call on the 100 nations, the 100 major polluters, in the first 100 days, to up the ante and make it clear that in fact if they didn't, there'd be a price to pay.
And lastly, I would be right now organizing the hemisphere and the world,
to provide $20 billion for the Amazon, for Brazil no longer to burn the Amazon, so they could have forests. They could have farming [but instead of burning, say], "This is what we're going to do." The region is burning out.
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Source: 11th Democratic primary debate (Biden-Sanders one-on-one)
Joe Biden on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Feb 19, 2020)
Eliminate all subsidies for oil and gas
I would eliminate all subsidies for oil and gas. That would save billions of dollars. On day one, when I'm elected president, I'm going to invite all of the members of the Paris Accord to Washington, D.C.
They make up 85 percent of the problem. They know me. I'm used to dealing with international relations. I will get them to up the ante in a big way.
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Source: 9th Democrat 2020 primary debate, in Las Vegas Nevada
Joe Biden on Paris Accord:
(Foreign Policy Feb 7, 2020)
We must keep our commitments when we make them, like NATO
I was part of putting together the Paris Climate Accord. I brought in the Chinese. I've been part of every major initiative we've had relative to diplomacy. I have not argued for the placement of major numbers of US combat troops. I have said we
have to strengthen NATO to make it clear that we keep our commitments when we make them. Like we don't keep our commitments to the Kurds. We must keep our commitments when we make them.
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Source: 8th Democrat 2020 primary debate, St. Anselm College in NH
Deval Patrick on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Feb 6, 2020)
Massachusetts met Paris Climate rules while he was Governor
If Massachusetts were a country and a signatory to the Paris accords, we would have met the goals of the Paris accords six years ago [In 2014, while I was governor]. We went from 900,000 megawatts of alternative energy generation to 4.7 million
megawatts of alternative energy, most of it solar, some wind. And in the meanwhile, we created this whole new tech industry, clean tech industry, which was one of the fastest growing in the commonwealth, and one of the reasons
why we came out recession faster than most other states.
The only thing we haven't done, and that I am open to, is a carbon tax. I'm open to it. That might be, and some have suggested that's a better idea than a cap-and-trade.
But in my view, it works best if we take, just as in the example I offered of the cap-and-trade system, if we use all of the proceeds to plow them into moving us faster to a green future.
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Source: CNN N. H. Town Hall on eve of 2020 N. H. primary
Joe Biden on Paris Accord:
(Environment Feb 5, 2020)
Will bring polluting country leaders to US to find solutions
85 percent of the pollution that we deal with comes from the rest of the world. I was part of putting together the Paris climate accord. I would immediately rejoin it.
And I would immediately bring in the single biggest polluters in the first 100 days to the United States and say, we have to up the ante in how we move forward.
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Source: CNN N. H. Town Hall on eve of 2020 N. H. primary
Mike Bloomberg on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Jan 20, 2020)
Make climate change a U.S. priority; rejoin Paris Agreement
Mike will immediately rejoin the Paris Agreement, re-assert global leadership by laying out an aggressive plan for U.S carbon reduction, and rally other countries to curb climate change. He will make climate change a priority of U.S. foreign policy.
And he will protect the U.S. from climate-related security risks and protect the world's most vulnerable people from the impacts of climate change.Mike will accelerate the use of clean energy to replace power from fossil fuels. He will set limits on
air and water pollution from power plants. He will invest in communities that have suffered most from coal pollution or have been left behind in the transition to clean energy. He will expand incentives to make clean energy affordable for all
families. And he will quadruple the federal R&D investment in clean energy and end subsidies for fossil fuels.
Mike will create a national program to invest in upgrading homes and buildings to save energy and reduce pollution.
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Source: 2020 Presidential campaign website MikeBloomberg.com
Susan Rice on Paris Accord:
(Foreign Policy Nov 14, 2019)
Worked to bring allies together to address challenges
Q: What is the Obama foreign policy legacy?RICE: I think we effectively leveraged our alliances and partnerships to address key concerns. Whether it was working to negotiate the Paris Climate Agreement, or the Iran nuclear agreement, or the
Trans-Pacific Partnership, or the coalition to fight ISIS, or to fight the Ebola epidemic. We effectively brought allies and partners together to address those complex challenges and did so even as we had to confront many of them simultaneously.
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Source: Council on Foreign Relations on 2020 Veepstakes
Julian Castro on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Sep 4, 2019)
People First, Planet First: net-zero by 2045
Q: What would your first step be in dealing with this climate crisis?CASTRO: My first executive order will be to rejoin the Paris climate accord so that we lead again on sustainability. But it's actually what comes next after that that is the most
important, a series of other executive actions and legislation. Just yesterday I put out a plan called, People First, Planet First. We would make investments to get the United States to net zero by 2045. We would incentivize wind energy
production, solar energy production, invest in renewables. We would challenge the rest of the world at latest to get to net zero by 2050. We would institute a carbon pollution fee to help make the investments that
we need to make. We would also take executive orders, for instance, prohibiting fossil fuel exploration, permitting of it and extraction on federal lands.
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Source: CNN Climate Crisis Town Hall marathon (10 Democrats)
Beto O`Rourke on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Sep 4, 2019)
Net zero greenhouse emissions on public lands
Q: The first thing that you would do to deal with this climate crisis?O'ROURKE: Day one, re-enter the Paris Climate Agreement. On that same day, make sure that we lead the world in going well beyond the Paris Climate Agreement. Ensure that we
regulate and enforce reduced greenhouse gas emissions from methane, and then get to net zero on public lands by ensuring we have no new oil and gas leases on federally protected lands and offshore areas that are now being drilled today.
Those three steps are a great place to start and a good pace to set. And then we follow that up by making sure that we have legally enforceable standards every single year over which no polluter can emit. We make sure that we get to net zero greenhouse
gas emissions by 2050, earlier if we can. And then we protect the most vulnerable communities, those who are on the front lines of climate change and pollution, making sure that we ensure that there's environmental justice in this country.
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Source: CNN Climate Crisis Town Hall marathon (10 Democrats)
Andrew Yang on Paris Accord:
(Environment Sep 4, 2019)
Reformulate GDP to account for clean air & clean water
Q: What would you do to deal with this climate crisis?YANG: The first thing I would do is rejoin the Paris Accords. And then I would we redefine our economic bench marks actually to include environmental sustainability. Because right now, the trap
that Democrats are in is that, we're being told that moving towards a green economy is bad for jobs, it's bad for business, and that couldn't be further from the truth. We actually need to redefine our economic measurements to include clean air and
clean water and let America.
Q: How do you change that?
YANG: Well the great thing is we made up GPD almost 100 years ago, really. And even the inventor of GPD at the time said this is a terrible measurement for national well-being and we should
never use it as that. Let's upgrade it with a new score card that includes our environmental sustainability, health and life expectancy. [Then we won't] fall into this false dichotomy that what's good for the planet is bad for the economy.
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Source: CNN Climate Crisis Town Hall marathon (10 Democrats)
Kamala Harris on Paris Accord:
(Environment Sep 4, 2019)
Declare drinking water emergency on Day One
Q: If you become president on day one, do you declare a national emergency on the climate? HARRIS: Well, I certainly would declare an emergency--a drinking water emergency. And, if you don't mind, I'm just going to stand.
And, also, I think it's critically important that we immediately on day one get back in the Paris agreement.
I think it's important that, on day one, we immediately ratify the Kigali agreement in terms of the Montreal Protocol and that amendment.
And I think it's critically important, on day one, that we end any fossil fuel leases on public lands. And, that, I'm prepared to do on day one as a matter of executive action.
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Source: CNN Climate Crisis Town Hall marathon (10 Democrats)
Joe Biden on Paris Accord:
(Free Trade Sep 4, 2019)
Use tariffs to get China to pay the price for pollution
Q: How would you try to get China to lower its emissions?BIDEN: We have to bring around the rest of the world. When we did the Paris accord that they signed onto, it was agreed that we would constantly up the ante. China is exporting coal technology.
They're making the environment much, much worse. There has to be a price that they pay if they do that. That's why I would talk about dealing with them in terms of tariffs. But you've got to get the rest of the world in on the deal to do i
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Source: Climate Crisis Town Hall (CNN 2019 Democratic primary)
Andrew Yang on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Aug 9, 2019)
Provide developing countries alternatives to fossil fuels
The first step to any action on climate change is to rejoin the Paris Accords so that we have the moral authority and allies in order to fight the existential threat that is climate change. In order to combat the development of fossil fuel power
expanding to developing countries, we have to provide a viable alternative.
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Source: Council on Foreign Relations on 2020 presidential primary
Kamala Harris on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Jul 31, 2019)
Rejoin Paris Accord on Day One; carbon neutral by 2030
Gov. Jay Inslee: : Climate change is not a singular issue, it is all the issues that we Democrats care about. It is health. It is national security. It is our economy. The science tells us we have to get off coal in 10 years. We have to have off of
fossil fuels in our electrical grid in 15. And we need a president to do it or it won't get done.Harris: I have to agree with Governor Inslee. We currently have a president in the White House who obviously does not understand the science.
The guy thinks that wind turbines cause cancer, but what in fact what they cause is jobs. I would take any Democrat on this stage over the current president of the United States.
We must have and adopt a Green New Deal. On day one I would re-enter us in the Paris agreement. And put in place so we would be carbon neutral by 2030.
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Source: July Democratic Primary debate (second night in Detroit)
Joe Biden on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Jul 31, 2019)
Rejoin and raise standards of Paris Climate Accord
Gov. Jay Inslee: Climate change is not a singular issue, it is all the issues that we Democrats care about. It is health. It is national security. It is our economy. And we know this; middle ground solutions, like the vice president has proposed,
are not going to save us.Biden: There is no middle ground about my plan. We're responsible for 15% of all the pollution in the country. 85% of it is something
I helped negotiate; and that is the Paris Climate Accord. I would immediately rejoin that Paris Accord. I would make sure that we up the ante which it calls for.
I would be able to bring those leaders together and I would raise the standard. I also invested $400 billion in research for new alternatives to deal with climate change.
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Source: July Democratic Primary debate (second night in Detroit)
Cory Booker on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Jul 31, 2019)
Climate change is the lens through which we view every issue
[Like President Trump exiting the Paris Climate Accord], there was another president that would not join an international accord. Then it was the Kyoto accords [under President Bush]. I was mayor then. And I stood up in national leadership
joining with other mayors to say climate change is not a separate issue. It must be the lens with which we view every issue.
Nobody should get applause for rejoining the Paris climate accords. We have to make sure that everything from our trade deals, everything from the billions of dollars we spend to foreign aid, everything must be sublimated to dealing with
the climate threat.Yes, the majority of this problem is outside the United States, but the only way we're going to deal with this is if the United States leads.
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Source: July Democratic Primary debate (second night in Detroit)
Joe Sestak on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Jul 30, 2019)
Rejoin Paris Accord; US must restore global leadership
I will immediately move to re-join the Paris Climate Accord, and not only work to compel nations to meet their commitments but to increase them. It is absolutely imperative that we restore US global leadership in this critical multilateral effort so
that we can collectively disarm the catastrophic threat of climate change. We simply cannot do it alone: the United States can only achieve 15% of the required reduction of greenhouse gas emissions on our own before that time bomb explodes on us.
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Source: Council on Foreign Relations on 2020 presidential primary
Seth Moulton on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Jul 30, 2019)
Need to make climate change a top priority
We need to make clean energy more cost-effective than coal for developing countries. We should also rejoin the Paris Climate Accord immediately, and we must also go further. If we hope to not only save the planet but also remain the economic
and diplomatic leaders of it, we need to make climate change a top priority in our investment, foreign policy, and national security decisions. And we must do so now before it's too late.
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Source: Council on Foreign Relations on 2020 presidential primary
Joe Sestak on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Jul 9, 2019)
Rejoin Paris Accord, ban offshore drilling
As president, Sestak will rejoin the Paris Accord, stop subsidies to the fossil fuel industry, fine carbon polluters with proceeds going to research renewable energy sources and strategies, ban offshore drilling, and give the
EPA "full authority to regulate substances (like HFCs) that contribute to global warming."
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Source: Townhall.com on 2020 Democratic primary
Joe Sestak on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Jul 9, 2019)
Rejoin Paris Accord, stop subsidies to fossil fuel industry
As president, Sestak will rejoin the Paris Accord, stop subsidies to the fossil fuel industry, fine carbon polluters with proceeds going to research renewable energy sources and strategies, ban offshore drilling, and give the
EPA "full authority to regulate substances (like HFCs) that contribute to global warming."
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Source: Townhall.com, 2019 interview series
Kamala Harris on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Jun 27, 2019)
Climate crisis represents existential threat to our species
I don't call it climate change. It's a climate crisis. It represents an existential threat to us as a species. And the fact that we have a president who has embraced science fiction over science fact will be to our collective peril.
We must confront what is immediate and before us right now. That is why I support a Green New Deal. It is why I will re-enter us in the Paris Agreement, because we have to take these issues seriously.
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Source: June Democratic Primary debate (second night in Miami)
Joe Sestak on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Jun 23, 2019)
Replace fossil fuel subsidies with fees for carbon polluters
Climate change and environmental collapse are twin problems that threaten the very existence of life as we know it on this planet. Solving them presents our generation with the greatest challenge in human history--and it is imperative that we rise to
meet this challenge. The stakes are just too high if we fail. Priorities:- Re-join the Paris Accord and restoring our leadership role among the community of nations working together to fight climate change.
-
Stop subsidizing fossil fuel industries.
- Implement a fee for carbon polluters, with proceeds being returned to all Americans as a dividend and also devoted to research & development in renewable energy and other
climate-stabilizing strategies.
- Establish a permanent moratorium on all future offshore drilling and Arctic drilling, including in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge..
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Source: 2020 presidential campaign website JoeSestak.com
Bill de Blasio on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil May 18, 2019)
Supports Green New Deal & Paris Climate Accords
The mayor recently rolled out his Green New Deal-like plan for New York.
He also opposes natural gas pipelines and wants the U.S. back in the Paris Climate Accords.
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Source: Townhall.com: "The 2020 Democrats" (presidential hopefuls)
Steve Bullock on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil May 15, 2019)
Re-enter Paris climate agreement
Bullock has tried to balance the interests of Montana's coal industry with the need to address climate change. He criticized Trump's decision to withdraw from the Paris climate agreement. Before the Trump administration
revoked the Clean Power Plan, Bullock led an effort to comply with the Obama administration initiative to reduce pollution from power plants, but shied away from giving his full-fledged support for the policy.
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Source: PBS News Hour 2020, "Where the candidate stands on 9 issues"
Wayne Messam on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Apr 22, 2019)
Criticized Trump for quitting Paris Climate Accord
Messam signed a letter that criticized
President Trump for his plan to withdraw the U.S. from the Paris Climate Accord.
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Source: Axios.com on 2020 Democratic primary
John Delaney on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Apr 18, 2019)
Re-enter the Paris Climate Agreement
Q: As president, would you keep the U.S. in the Paris Agreement and commit to more ambitious targets in 2020?John Delaney: "I would re-enter the Paris Agreement and make the U.S. a global leader in climate policy and new energy technology.
With a carbon tax and an investment in negative emissions technology, we can reduce emissions by 40 percent by 2030 and can be at net-zero carbon by 2050."
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Source: 2019 "Meet the Candidates" (NY Times.com)
Marianne Williamson on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Apr 18, 2019)
Broad-based federal carbon tax at $60 per ton
Q: Would you keep the US in the Paris Agreement and commit to more ambitious targets in 2020?Williamson: "Yes."
Q: Do you support a federal carbon tax?
Williamson: "I feel a federal carbon tax is important and is only one tool that we will need
to address this imminent threat. The challenge, of course, is how to implement such a tool without irreparably damaging the economy. Many scholars think that a tax should be about $49 or $50 per ton of CO2 -- not more than $60 per ton.
Any federal carbon tax should be spread across a broad sector as to not cause the effect to be carried by the consumer at the gas pump or electric meter. Natural gas production that produces methane, which is even worse than CO2 environmentally, should
carry some of the burden. The agriculture sector that produces large amounts of methane should carry some of the burden. Funds should be used to retire inefficient equipment, to incentivize zero-carbon-producing technologies and to spur a green economy."
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Source: 2019 "Meet the Candidates" (NY Times.com)
Amy Klobuchar on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Apr 18, 2019)
Open to carbon tax, but without increased prices
Q: As president, would you keep the U.S. in the Paris Agreement and commit to more ambitious targets in 2020?Her campaign didn't answer this question, but Ms. Klobuchar said at a CNN town hall-style event: "I will, as first day as the president,
sign us back into the international climate change agreement. That is on Day 1."
Q: Do you support a federal carbon tax? If so, at what price per ton, and how do you envision the proceeds being used?
Ms. Klobuchar's campaign said she was open to a
carbon tax but would not support one that increased prices for lower- and middle-income Americans. It did not provide an on-the-record quote.
Q: Would you restore Obama-era climate change regulations that the Trump administration has reversed, like
the Clean Power Plan, methane limits and vehicle emissions standards?
Ms. Klobuchar's campaign confirmed that she would restore the Clean Power Plan and gas mileage standards, but did not provide an on-the-record quote.
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Source: 2019 "Meet the Candidates" (NY Times.com)
Elizabeth Warren on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Apr 18, 2019)
Return to Paris climate accord, & build on it
Q: As president, would you keep the U.S. in the Paris Agreement and commit to more ambitious targets in 2020?Warren: "I believe we need to return to the Paris climate accord, and then we need to build on it. We need to do far more to reduce global
emissions, but we can only do that when we're leading from the front."
Q: Would you restore Obama-era climate change regulations that the Trump administration has reversed, like the Clean Power Plan, methane limits and vehicle emissions standards?
Warren: "I have strongly opposed the Trump administration's efforts to roll back the Clean Power Plan and other Obama-era methane limits and vehicle emission standards. As president, I would reverse these rollbacks."
Q: Do you support a national
renewable energy standard?
Warren: "I am an original cosponsor of the Green New Deal resolution, which commits the United States to meet 100 percent of our power demand through clean, renewable and zero-emission energy sources."
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Source: 2019 "Meet the Candidates" (NY Times.com)
Cory Booker on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Apr 18, 2019)
Rejoin Paris Climate Agreement, plus domestic legislation
Q: Would you keep the US in the Paris Agreement?Booker: "As president, I will immediately move to rejoin the Paris Agreement and to increase our emission reduction targets to align with the scientific consensus for the necessary speed and scale
at which we must decarbonize in order to keep global warming below 1.5 degrees."
Q: Would you restore Obama-era climate change regulations that the Trump administration has reversed?
Booker: "The Trump EPA is taking actions to gut the Clean Power
Plan, to weaken methane limits and to reverse vehicle emissions standards. All of these actions will make climate change worse. As president, I will restore these policies as part of a comprehensive approach to address climate change."
Q: Do you
support new regulations to cut greenhouse gas emissions?
Booker: "I will both work with Congress to pass comprehensive climate legislation and, when appropriate, use executive powers to address the existential threat posed by global warming."
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Source: 2019 "Meet the Candidates" (NY Times.com)
Jay Inslee on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Apr 18, 2019)
Rejoin Paris Climate Agreement on Day 1
Q: As president, would you keep the U.S. in the Paris Agreement and commit to more ambitious targets in 2020?Inslee: Yes. President Trump's attempt to leave the Paris Agreement was one of the most shameful decisions of a shameful presidency.
America can and should be a leader in the global fight against climate change. As president, I will recommit to the Paris accord and work on Day 1 to undo Donald Trump's attacks on international climate progress.
We are ready: I am proud to say that within hours of Trump's announcement that he intended to pull the U.S. out of the agreement, I co-founded the U.S. Climate Alliance--a bipartisan coalition of states that are committed to upholding
America's contributions to that pact. This alliance now consists of 22 states and Puerto Rico that together comprise over half of America's population and its economy.
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Source: 2019 "Meet the Candidates" (NY Times.com)
Wayne Messam on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Apr 18, 2019)
Climate change is not a hoax; we need bold action
Q: As president, would you keep the U.S. in the Paris Agreement and commit to more ambitious targets in 2020?Messam: Yes. Climate change is not a hoax. It affects the quality of the air we breathe and the water we drink.
As president, my administration will make it a priority to lead the world and take bold, direct climate action that will rival the
New Deal in scope, rise to the scale of this challenge, and apply the urgency required to get the job done in 10 years. We need bold ideas that will meet the scale of the climate change crisis.
Q: Do you support a federal carbon tax?
Messam: All options will remain on the table to take action on climate change. I will use the bully pulpit and the veto pen to ensure we do not force our children to live under extreme conditions.
Click for Wayne Messam on other issues.
Source: 2019 "Meet the Candidates" (NY Times.com)
Tim Ryan on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Apr 18, 2019)
Paris Climate Agreement doesn't go nearly far enough
Q: As president, would you keep the U.S. in the Paris Agreement and commit to more ambitious targets in 2020?Ryan: "Of course, although I don't think the Paris Agreement goes nearly far enough. I don't like when people say, 'Oh, we're going to rejoin
Paris,' and Paris is like the gold standard, because that's not anywhere close to what we need to do, and we're learning more every day about just how far behind those goals are. And that's why I think a national effort around innovation is really
important."
Q: Do you support a federal carbon tax?
Ryan: "I'm open to it. I haven't made a decision on it."
Q: Would you restore Obama-era climate change regulations that the Trump administration has reversed, like the Clean Power
Plan, methane limits and vehicle emissions standards?
Ryan: "Yes."
Q: Do you support a national renewable energy standard? If so, what would it be? If not, why not?
Ryan: "I'm open and leaning to support, depending on the details."
Click for Tim Ryan on other issues.
Source: 2019 "Meet the Candidates" (NY Times.com)
Bernie Sanders on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Apr 18, 2019)
Keep US in Paris Climate Agreement & increase targets
Q: As president, would you keep the U.S. in the Paris Agreement and commit to more ambitious targets in 2020?A: Sanders's campaign confirmed that he would keep the United States in the Paris Agreement and increase emission reduction targets, but did
not provide an on-the-record quote.
Q: Would you restore Obama-era climate change regulations that the Trump administration has reversed, like the Clean Power Plan, methane limits and vehicle emissions standards?
A: Sanders's campaign said he would
restore Obama-era regulations.
Q: Do you support new regulations to cut greenhouse gas emissions beyond what was in place under President Obama?
A: Sanders's campaign said he would go beyond Obama-era regulations, but did not elaborate or provide
an on-the-record quote.
Q: Do you support a national renewable energy standard? If so, what would it be? If not, why not?
A: Sanders's campaign reiterated his support for the Green New Deal, which calls for 100 percent renewable energy.
Click for Bernie Sanders on other issues.
Source: 2019 "Meet the Candidates" (NY Times.com)
Eric Swalwell on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Apr 18, 2019)
Keep US in Paris Climate Agreement, with ambitious targets
Q: As president, would you keep the U.S. in the Paris Agreement and commit to more ambitious targets in 2020?Swalwell: "As president, I would keep the United States in the Paris Agreement; this is a global crisis, and we must work with the world to
address it. We can aim for more ambitious targets in 2020."
Q: Do you support a federal carbon tax?
Swalwell: "I'm open to exploring the idea of a federal carbon tax. We need to get to a carbon-neutral status, and this could help."
Q: Would you restore Obama-era climate change regulations that the Trump administration has reversed, like the Clean Power Plan, methane limits and vehicle emissions standards?
Swalwell: "President Obama was on the right track toward making our
country more climate responsible with regulations like the Clean Power Plan, methane limits and vehicle emissions standards. I would restore all of the Obama-era regulations that the Trump administration has reversed."
Click for Eric Swalwell on other issues.
Source: 2019 "Meet the Candidates" (NY Times.com)
Kamala Harris on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Apr 18, 2019)
Restore Clean Power Plan and Clean Car Standards
Q: As president, would you keep the U.S. in the Paris Agreement and commit to more ambitious targets in 2020?A: Yes, she wants to return the U.S. to the Paris deal.
Q: Would you restore Obama-era climate change regulations that the Trump
administration has reversed, like the Clean Power Plan?
A: Harris's campaign said she wanted to "restore the Clean Power Plan and fully implement the Clean Car Standards."
Q: Do you support a national renewable energy standard?
A: She is for a national goal for renewable energy.
Q: Do you support increasing federal funding for clean-energy research?
A: Harris's campaign said that as president, she would "invest in clean energy research and infrastructure."
Click for Kamala Harris on other issues.
Source: 2019 "Meet the Candidates" (NY Times.com)
Kirsten Gillibrand on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Apr 18, 2019)
Rejoin Paris Climate Agreement, plus price on carbon
Q: As president, would you keep the U.S. in the Paris Agreement and commit to more ambitious targets in 2020?Gillibrand: "As president, she would rejoin the Paris Agreement. She believes that the United States must lead the international community
to set more ambitious targets to achieve net-zero carbon emissions."
Q: Do you support a federal carbon tax?
Ms. Gillibrand's campaign provided an excerpt from her campaign launch speech: "Addressing a global challenge of this urgency will take
massive effort and transformative vision, which is exactly why we should do it. Let's invest in our crumbling infrastructure, create sustainable green jobs, and protect clean air and clean water as a universal human right.
And I'd go further than others who support this plan. I'd also put a price on carbon to use market forces to steer companies away from fossil fuels and towards clean and renewable energy."
Click for Kirsten Gillibrand on other issues.
Source: 2019 "Meet the Candidates" (NY Times.com)
Pete Buttigieg on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Apr 18, 2019)
Institute carbon tax, to capture the true cost of things
Q: As president, would you keep the U.S. in the Paris Agreement and commit to more ambitious targets in 2020?A: Yes.
Q: Do you support a federal carbon tax?
A: "We're going to have to contemplate a carbon tax. And there are ways to do it that
most Americans would be better off fiscally, because we could return it right back to the American people, but in so doing would help capture the true cost of things that are happening right now, because it's in your and my lifetime that that cost is
going to be paid one way or the other." At a rally in Iowa, he said definitively, "We're going to have to have a carbon tax."
Q: Would you restore Obama-era climate change regulations that the Trump administration has reversed, like the Clean Power
Plan, methane limits and vehicle emissions standards?
A: Yes.
Q: Do you support increasing federal funding for clean-energy research?
A: Yes.
Click for Pete Buttigieg on other issues.
Source: 2019 "Meet the Candidates" (NY Times.com)
Tulsi Gabbard on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Apr 18, 2019)
2017: Short-sighted to withdraw from Paris Climate Accord
Q: As president, would you keep the US in the Paris Agreement?Ms. Gabbard's campaign responded with a 2017 statement: "President Trump's decision to withdraw from the Paris Agreement, making us just one of three countries in the world not to
participate, is short-sighted and irresponsible. Without global action to drastically curb carbon pollution, climate change threatens the safety and security of the planet, especially in places like Hawaii where we are already experiencing its
devastating effects. The US should be leading by example, leveraging innovation through science and technology, investing in clean energy, creating renewable energy jobs that cannot be outsourced, growing the economy, enhancing U.S. energy independence,
and lowering energy costs for families and businesses, while reducing carbon emissions. We must continue to persevere and do our part to support efforts in the private sector and at all levels of government to combat climate change."
Click for Tulsi Gabbard on other issues.
Source: 2019 "Meet the Candidates" (NY Times.com)
Andrew Yang on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Apr 18, 2019)
Rejoin rest of world in Paris Climate Agreement
Q: Would you keep the US in the Paris Agreement and commit to more ambitious targets in 2020?Yang: "Absolutely. America needs to rejoin the rest of the world in formally recognizing the threat posed by climate change and work with all nations to
combat this existential crisis. The Paris Agreement doesn't go far enough to mitigate climate change, and the U.S. should be a part of the conversation on what targets are necessary and how we can get to them. Only through something like the Paris
Agreement can we effectively tackle this problem. The US accounts for only about 15% of global emissions, so any solution requires other countries to make similar changes. We also need to recognize that our targets probably aren't enough to prevent some
of the worst effects of climate change. We need to heavily fund research into geoengineering projects such as carbon capture in order to undo some of the damage we've already done. The U.S. should be a leader in developing this technology."
Click for Andrew Yang on other issues.
Source: 2019 "Meet the Candidates" (NY Times.com)
Beto O`Rourke on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Apr 18, 2019)
Leverage carbon pricing; use market against climate change
Q: Would you keep the US in the Paris Agreement and commit to more ambitious targets in 2020?O'Rourke: Yes. We must reassert our international leadership on this issue before it's too late. We need to build on the Paris climate agreement to achieve
even bolder action on climate. Going back to 2015 is not enough. There's a discount, economically and politically, on anything that's decades down the road. So let's not waste time in getting moving fast in the right direction again.
Q: Do you support
a federal carbon tax?
O'Rourke: We should leverage carbon pricing and the market in service of our ability to meet this challenge. There are a number of ways you can support pricing carbon into the market: You can do that through standards,
the tax code, research and reinvestment. We need transparent, science-based, science-driven carbon pricing to guide our decisions as a democracy, strengthen our communities, support our workers, and unleash a robust market response to climate change.
Click for Beto O`Rourke on other issues.
Source: 2019 "Meet the Candidates" (NY Times.com)
John Hickenlooper on Paris Accord:
(Technology Apr 18, 2019)
Public-private partnerships for next-gen energy technology
Q: As president, would you keep the U.S. in the Paris Agreement and commit to more ambitious targets in 2020?Hickenlooper: Yes.
Q: Would you restore Obama-era climate change regulations that the Trump administration has reversed, like the Clean
Power Plan, methane limits and vehicle emissions standards?
Hickenlooper: Yes.
Q: Do you support new regulations to cut greenhouse gas emissions beyond what was in place under President Obama?
Hickenlooper: Yes.
Q: Do you support a national renewable energy standard? If so, what would it be? If not, why not?
Hickenlooper: Yes.
Q: Do you support increasing federal funding for clean-energy research? If so, how much money?
Are there specific areas of research you're most interested in funding, and why?
Hickenlooper: Yes. Next-generation clean energy technologies; public-private partnerships.
Click for John Hickenlooper on other issues.
Source: 2019 "Meet the Candidates" (NY Times.com)
Bill Weld on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Apr 15, 2019)
Would rejoin Paris accords
Weld supports rejoining the Paris climate agreement,
according to Boston.com.
Click for Bill Weld on other issues.
Source: Axios.com "What you need to know about 2020"
Julian Castro on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Apr 11, 2019)
Cut carbon emissions; invest in renewable energy
I would recommit the United States to the Paris climate accord. I like the concept of a Green New Deal. We need to invest in renewable energy. We need to drastically cut down carbon emissions. We need to convince other countries around the world to do
the same thing. I'm proud that when I was secretary of housing and urban development, we worked with housing authorities across the United States to improve their embrace of renewable energy, solar energy, other types of renewable energy.
Click for Julian Castro on other issues.
Source: CNN Town Hall: 2020 presidential hopefuls
Eric Swalwell on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Apr 10, 2019)
Support for Green New Deal and Paris climate accord
Swalwell has voiced support for the Green New Deal, the progressive climate action bill that
House Democrats introduced in February. He has also expressed strong disapproval of President Donald Trump's decision to pull out of the Paris climate accord.
Click for Eric Swalwell on other issues.
Source: PBS News Hour on 2020 Democratic primary
Mike Gravel on Paris Accord:
(Foreign Policy Apr 9, 2019)
No "America alone": re-engage with multilateral institutions
Over the past few years, the United States has systematically left the multilateral institutions of the world. This country cannot afford to commit itself to re-isolation and the "America alone" vision of the world.
The only way to sustainable peace and prosperity around the globe is a commitment to engaging in mutual aid with other countries. The United States should: - Rejoin the Paris Agreement and be a full party to its decisions.
-
Reverse its withdrawal from the United Nations Human Rights Council.
- Rejoin the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, popularly known as the Iran nuclear deal.
- Commit to providing full humanitarian assistance
in accordance with multilateral commitments.
- Work with other nations to reform the United Nations Security Council, expanding the P5 to reflect a more global distribution of power.
Click for Mike Gravel on other issues.
Source: 2020 Presidential campaign website MikeGravel.com
Cory Booker on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Mar 27, 2019)
Leadership in dealing with climate change, including nuclear
I support the Green New Deal. When I was mayor, I found out that we can environmentally retrofit buildings, lower our carbon footprint, create good union jobs and apprenticeship programs. Nuclear has to be part of this solution.
Next-generation nuclear is so much safer, uses spent fuel rods. One of the first things I do, should I be president, will be rejoining the Paris Climate Accords.
Click for Cory Booker on other issues.
Source: CNN Town Hall: 2020 presidential hopefuls
Beto O`Rourke on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Mar 14, 2019)
Return to Paris climate agreement
- O'Rourke would return the U.S. to the international Paris climate accord, under which the U.S. pledged to cut greenhouse gas emissions 26 to 28 percent by the year 2025.
- In general, O'Rourke focuses on the
economic potential of renewable fuels and the economic hazards of not addressing climate change.
- It is unclear if he supports deeper carbon emissions cuts or a carbon tax.
- He would allow fracking, but with tighter oversight.
Click for Beto O`Rourke on other issues.
Source: PBS News hour on 2020 Presidential hopefuls
Pete Buttigieg on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Mar 10, 2019)
Climate security is priority, invest in renewables
We need our expectations of 21st century security to include the concept of climate security. We've got to make sure we are reducing carbon levels at least to the kinds of commitments that were in the Paris Accord, which we should
rejoin immediately when the new president takes office. More investments in renewables are going to be needed. We're going to have to contemplate a carbon tax. There are ways to do it that most Americans would be better off fiscally.
Click for Pete Buttigieg on other issues.
Source: CNN Town Hall: back-to-back 2020 presidential hopefuls
Bill Weld on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Mar 5, 2019)
Climate change is real, must be addressed
Q: What about the Paris climate agreement? A: I think we should rejoin the Paris climate accords and adopt percentages that are consonant with our responsibility. On the issue of climate, there is a divide between the developed nations and lesser-
develop, because we've got ours." Again, that's an unattractive point of view.
Q: And the Green New Deal?
A:I've got to study that more than I have. It sounds pretty expensive, and I think some of what's coming out of the left hand of the Democratic
Party is probably more than I could sit still for. But I do think that, at bottom, Europe has its monuments and its cathedrals, and we've got our mountains and our valleys and our rivers and our streams, and we better damn well take care of them.
Click for Bill Weld on other issues.
Source: Common Dreams e-zine on 2019 CPAC, "Run Against Trump"
Pete Buttigieg on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Feb 15, 2019)
Supports Paris climate accord and Green New Deal
Buttigieg considers climate change a national security threat and a problem that will impact younger Americans and future generations. He supports every U.S. house becoming "net zero" consumer of energy, and is in favor of the government subsidizing
solar panels. Buttigieg was one of 407 U.S. mayors who signed a pact to adhere to the Paris climate accord after President Donald Trump pulled out of the international agreement 2017. He supports the "Green New Deal."
Click for Pete Buttigieg on other issues.
Source: PBS Newshour on 2020 Democratic primary
Bill Weld on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Feb 15, 2019)
Climate change dangers are real; rejoin Paris Accords
Whether as protection of a fragile ecosystem or as stewardship of God's creation, there is a pressing need to act on climate change. The United States must rejoin the Paris climate accords, and adopt targets consonant with those of other industrialized
nations. We must protect our economy, yes, but we must also recognize that increased natural disasters and unfamiliar weather patterns threaten to strip the snow from our White Mountains, and to melt all the mountain glaciers worldwide
upon which hundreds of millions of people depend for their only source of water. Europe has its cathedrals and monuments; we have our mountains, canyons, valleys, rivers and streams--and we had damn well better take care of them. Our borders are safe in
New Hampshire, but it is not a stretch to say that if climate change is not addressed, our coastlines and those of all other countries will over time be obliterated by storm surge and the melting of the polar ice cap.
Click for Bill Weld on other issues.
Source: Speech in New Hampshire by 2020 presidential hopefuls
Amy Klobuchar on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Feb 10, 2019)
Rejoin Paris climate deal; meet UN goals
- Climate change: Set goals for cutting greenhouse emissions and rejoin Paris climate deal.
- Klobuchar wants to meet the goals of the
U.N. panel on climate change: cut greenhouse gases by 45 percent by 2030, and increase renewable energy by up to 47 percent by 2050.
-
She has not given specifics recently on how she would achieve those goals.
- But in 2008, Klobuchar pushed for a bill to cut emissions 70 percent by the year 2050 via a cap-and-trade market system.
- Klobuchar would also rejoin the Paris accord and push to set national guidelines to boost renewable fuel use.
Click for Amy Klobuchar on other issues.
Source: PBS News hour on 2020 Presidential hopefuls
Kamala Harris on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Jan 21, 2019)
Don't withdraw from the Paris climate accord
- California's attorney general, Harris launched an investigation into Exxon Mobil in 2016, after reports that the oil and gas giant lied for decades about the risks of climate change.
- Harris criticized President Donald Trump's decision to
withdraw from the Paris climate accord.
- Additionally, Harris opposed the Trump administration's proposal to reverse Obama-era fuel efficiency standards for cars and light trucks.
Click for Kamala Harris on other issues.
Source: PBS News hour on 2020 Presidential hopefuls
Julian Castro on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Jan 12, 2019)
Rejoin the Paris Climate Treaty
Castro has criticized President Donald Trump for withdrawing from the Paris climate change accord. - Castro's overall approach in public office was to try to convince businesses to increase their reliance on renewable energy voluntarily.
-
While he was mayor of San Antonio, the local utility committed to close a coal plant and embrace a 20 percent renewables goal.
- It is not clear if Castro supports a carbon tax or "cap and trade" policy to reduce carbon emissions.
Click for Julian Castro on other issues.
Source: PBS News hour on 2020 Presidential hopefuls
Ted Cruz on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Oct 9, 2018)
Paris Accord destroys $3 trillion in American GDP by 2040
Q: Consider climate change a serious threat?Ted Cruz (R): No. Doesn't believe it's real. Says data disproving it is being ignored as liberals want government power over economy, energy sector & all aspects of our lives.
Beto O'Rourke (D): Yes. "Crucial now more than ever that US & world leaders act urgently to address" it. Climate change increases droughts, wildfires, hurricanes, & other disasters.
Q: Climate Change: Limit or tax production of greenhouse gases?
Support US participation in Paris Climate Accord despite President Trump's withdrawal?
Ted Cruz (R): Opposes regulating greenhouse gases. Paris Accord "would have destroyed $3 trillion in American GDP & killed
6.5 million industrial sector jobs by 2040."
Beto O'Rourke (D): Limit greenhouse gases. "Need to take unprecedented action" in building clean energy economy. Opposes withdrawing from Paris Accord.
Click for Ted Cruz on other issues.
Source: 2018 CampusElect.org Issue Guide on Texas Senate race
Marianne Williamson on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Jul 24, 2018)
Massive effort to combat effects of climate change
Climate change denial is moving irretrievably into the dustbin of history's worst ideas. American citizens--if not yet the majority of politicians currently in power--are ready to embark upon a massive effort to combat the effects not
only of catastrophic weather conditions, but also the effects of climate change denial on our environmental and political policies. The American people are being vastly underserved by America's rejection of the Paris Climate Accord.
Click for Marianne Williamson on other issues.
Source: Healing the Soul of America, by Marianne Williamson, p.178
Pope Francis on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Jun 20, 2018)
Future of humanity is at stake with climate change
Pope Francis said Trump's decision to pull out of the Paris agreement to curb climate change caused him "a bit of pain because the future of humanity is at stake".
The pope said he hoped Trump would re-think his position.
Click for Pope Francis on other issues.
Source: Reuters on 2018 Trump Administration
Donald Trump on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil May 29, 2018)
OpEd: US is only country out of 197 to reject Paris accord
The US government has completely abdicated its role as a leader in the effort to slow and ultimately reverse climate change. In 2017, the Trump administration shocked the world by rejecting the Paris climate agreement--the only country out of 197 to do
so. This is bad not only for the environment but also for our economy. We should be positioning ourselves to be the leader in the new energy economy. Instead, our government refuses to acknowledge that climate change is occurring.
Click for Donald Trump on other issues.
Source: The Right Answer, by Rep. John Delaney, p. 81
Mike Bloomberg on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Apr 22, 2018)
America should be big part of climate solution
Q: Special Envoy to the United Nations for Climate Action Michael Bloomberg tells us he's making good on his pledge to help America's financial commitment to the Paris climate change accords, an international agreement that President Trump pulled out of
last year:BLOOMBERG: If the government is not going to do it, we all have a responsibility. I'm able to do it. So, yes, I'm going to send them a check for the monies that America had promised to the organization as though they got it from federal
government.
Q: $4.5 million dollars this year. Will you do the same next year?
BLOOMBERG: Hopefully, by then, President Trump will have changed his view.
Q: President Trump has been a huge critic of this Paris climate change accord.
BLOOMBERG: Yes, but he should change his mind and say, "look, there really is a problem here, America is part of the problem, America is a big part of the solution," and we should go in and help the world stop a potential disaster.
Click for Mike Bloomberg on other issues.
Source: CBS Face the Nation 2018 interviews of 2020 hopefuls
Mike Bloomberg on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Apr 22, 2018)
If some countries do right thing on climate, we all benefit
Q: One of the criticisms of the Paris climate change accords, is that it's nonbinding. And none of the developed nations who are part of it have actually met their benchmarks.BLOOMBERG: Look, it's dangerous to keep doing what we're doing.
If everybody would do the right thing, yes, it would be better. But if some people or some countries do the right thing, we all benefit from that.
Q: But the criticism is that industrialized nations aren't living up to those pledges.
BLOOMBERG:
I can't speak for other nations. All I know is that America, I believe, will meet its commitment by 2025 to reduce greenhouse gasses by an agreed amount. And if we do it, hopefully, other countries will do it as well.
Q: Do you feel like you're filling
a leadership gap?
BLOOMBERG: This is what the American public say they want to do. You have got companies and states and individuals all agreeing to step in, report to the United Nations what our progress is, fulfill our commitment to fund part of it.
Click for Mike Bloomberg on other issues.
Source: CBS Face the Nation 2018 interviews of 2020 hopefuls
Donald Trump on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Jul 13, 2017)
Claims Paris Accords costly; estimated US cost $170 billion
Trump has said that his withdrawal was motivated by the fact that the accord would be expensive, ineffective, and would cost American jobs. The World Resources Institute estimates it would cost America $170 billion. The US pulling out is largely
symbolic. The world was already moving toward lower carbon emissions. World carbon emissions peaked in 2007 and have been steadily declining since then. In contrast, use of clean energy, such as solar and wind have been on a steady rise.
When answering the question about the impact of withdrawal on domestic greenhouse gas emissions, it's important to separate the withdrawal with Trump's other environmental policies. Even before the pullout, Trump administration had cut funding to
EPA, discontinued the Clean Power Plan, greenlighted both the Dakota Access and Keystone pipelines, and allowed extractive operations on public land, all of which would have significant impact on US CO2 emissions regardless of the pullout.
Click for Donald Trump on other issues.
Source: Foreign Policy Magazine on Trump Administration
John Hickenlooper on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Jul 12, 2017)
Reduce greenhouse gas by 26% by 2025 and 35% by 2030
Gov. Hickenlooper declared that Colorado would join the U.S. Climate Alliance, a coalition supporting a global climate agreement to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.Hickenlooper's order set a goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 26 percent
by 2025 compared with 2012 levels and by 35 percent by 2030. He maintained that cheap natural gas and increasingly competitive wind and solar power cost would allow the state to achieve the goals, which are similar to those set in the 2015 Paris Accord.
Click for John Hickenlooper on other issues.
Source: ColoradoPolitics.com on 2018 Colorado Gubernatorial race
Donald Trump on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Jun 4, 2017)
Withdraw from Paris Agreement, to put America first
Q: On the Paris climate agreement: Pres. Trump said this on the decision to withdraw from the agreement:(VIDEO CLIP) TRUMP: The Paris agreement handicaps the United States' economy in order to win praise from the very foreign capitals and global
activists that have long sought to gain wealth at our country's expense. They don't put America first. I do, and I always will.
(END VIDEO) Q: And here's the argument by the EPA administrator:
(VIDEO CLIP) SCOTT PRUITT: It is a failed deal to
begin with. And even if all of the targets were met by all nations across the globe, it only reduced the temperature by less than two-tenths of one degree.
(END VIDEO) Q [to former V.P. Al Gore]: Less than two-tenths of one degree, President Trump
made a similar argument.
GORE: Well, first of all, it's not true. Things take longer to happen than you think they will, and then they happen much faster than you thought they could.
Click for Donald Trump on other issues.
Source: CNN 2017 interviews of 2020 hopefuls
Nikki Haley on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Jun 4, 2017)
Paris climate agreement cost US too many jobs
Q: 194 countries have signed the Paris climate agreement. Only three nations are not signatories to it, the United States, Nicaragua, which thought the emissions standards were not tough enough, and Syria. So on the one issue that unites the world,
essentially, the US is now isolated, the proverbial skunk at the garden party.HALEY: Well, I don't think we're the skunk at the party. I think that we watched out for our country. When I was a governor in South Carolina, I know how tough those
regulations President Obama put on us, because of the Paris agreement, were on our businesses and on our industries. It directly hit our jobs. We're going to make sure we're looking out for the U.S. first. We will always be a leader in the environment.
That's what we do, that's who we are. But we're going to make sure that we're not hurting our companies in the process. And there is a balance. There is clearly a difference between us and Nicaragua, and us and Syria. The world knows that.
Click for Nikki Haley on other issues.
Source: CNN 2017 interviews of 2020 hopefuls
Donald Trump on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Jun 2, 2017)
Represent Pittsburgh, not Paris: Coal over climate agreement
As he announced his decision to withdraw from the Paris climate agreement, President Trump said he was putting American jobs ahead of the needs of other countries. "I was elected to represent the citizens of Pittsburgh, not Paris," he said, claiming
that as a result of this action, "The coal mines are starting to open up. For many, many years that hasn't happened." Is that true?Short Answer: Yes, mines are opening, including a new one in Pennsylvania.
Long answer: That doesn't reverse the
overall decline of the coal mining industry from its glory days. The mines that are opening produce a special kind of coal used in steelmaking and are opening largely because of events unrelated to federal policy, experts say. The market for the kind of
coal used in electricity--the biggest use for coal--remains down relative to where it was several years ago. In other words, the industry has rebounded slightly after years of layoffs and closures caused mainly by competition from cheap natural gas.
Click for Donald Trump on other issues.
Source: NPR Fact-Check on 2017 Trump Administration promises
Pope Francis on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil May 24, 2017)
Climate change is a critical problem that must be addressed
The pope believes that man-made climate change is a critical problem that must be addressed by world leaders. Trump, on the other hand, has called climate change a hoax created by the Chinese, and wants to back out of the Paris climate accords.
Europeans seem to fall more in the pope's school of opinion. Indeed, when Trump arrived in Rome, he was greeted with an illuminated message blazoned across the dome of St. Peter's Basilica by environmental activists that read "Planet Earth First."
Click for Pope Francis on other issues.
Source: Vox.com on 2020 Presidential Hopefuls, "Trump-Pope Meeting"
Pope Francis on Paris Accord:
(Immigration May 24, 2017)
Vocal advocate for the plight of refugees
The pope is a passionate and vocal advocate for the plight of refugees, and he believes that man-made climate change is a critical problem that must be addressed by world leaders. Trump, on the other hand, has tried to temporarily
ban all refugees from the United States, called climate change a hoax created by the Chinese, and wants to back out of the Paris climate accords.
Click for Pope Francis on other issues.
Source: Vox.com on 2020 Presidential Hopefuls, "Trump-Pope Meeting"
Tom Steyer on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Mar 23, 2017)
Supports Paris agreement to develop renewable technology
Q: Given what you know about how policy moves markets, what will we give up when Trump pulls the US out of the Paris agreement?Steyer: OK, so look at the Paris agreement: It's going to force the developed world to change
its energy sources. That means the US could be the leader in developing renewable technology for more than a billion people--a huge incoming market--who don't have electricity at all.
Click for Tom Steyer on other issues.
Source: Nick Stockton in Wired.com on 2020 presidential hopefuls
Hillary Clinton on Paris Accord:
(Environment Mar 9, 2016)
We need green energy jobs & to build on Paris Agreement
We have to combat climate change, and no state has more at stake in that than Florida. And the best way to do that is not only enforcing the laws we have, but also the clean power plan that President Obama has put forth that I support, and the
Paris Agreement that I think was a huge step forward in the world, that Senator Sanders said was too weak, but I helped to lay the groundwork for that. But we need more clean energy jobs.
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Source: 2016 PBS Democratic primary debate in Miami
Cory Booker on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Dec 10, 2015)
Climate change requires American leadership
When I was [in France for the Paris climate talks] over there, I was moved to see virtually all of the globe represented by leaders, NGOs, and major corporations. Everyone was there. There was an array of the planet coming together, focused on this
issue of the impacts of climate change. Conversations ranged from focusing on us being innovative and how we are dealing with renewable technology, all the way to resiliency for poor populations who are disproportionately affected by climate change.
This is an issue that affects America that we cannot solve without joining with the rest of the globe. American leadership is incredibly needed. I am proud to send a strong message to the rest of the globe that we are here in the
United States strongly supporting the ambitious commitments of President Obama, and that we will defend those communities that are facing this crisis. We will be leaders.
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Source: Library of Congress transcript of Senate Floor Speech
Cory Booker on Paris Accord:
(Energy & Oil Dec 10, 2015)
Ice-melt is literally creating climate refugees
[At the Paris climate talks] I led a bilateral conversation with Bangladesh, talking to peer leaders--the U.S. sitting down with Ministry and Parliamentary members from Bangladesh. By many estimates, Bangladesh is the most vulnerable large country to
climate change. Due to climate change [including rising sea levels and ice-pack] melting off the Himalayas, right now Bangladesh is losing 1% of its arable land each year, displacing millions of Bangladeshis, literally creating climate refugees.
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Source: Library of Congress transcript of Senate Floor Speech
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