Joe Biden Says U.S. Will Lead Global Response to Climate Change
President Joe Biden has said the United States must lead the worldwide response to the threat of climate change. The president signed an executive order on Wednesday aimed at reducing the nation’s contribution to the changing climate.
Biden has paused licenses for oil, gas and coal extraction on some 700 million acres of federal lands – a move that has enraged some Republicans, who have accused the president of destroying jobs and livelihoods. The administration argues that its policies will create jobs as the U.S. begins to tackle climate change.
“We’ve already waited too long to deal with this climate crisis,” Biden said. “We can’t wait any longer. We see it with our own eyes, we feel it. We know it in our bones.”
“I’m signing today an executive order to supercharge our administration’s ambitious plan to confront the existential threat of climate change … we must lead the global response,” the president added.
Former President Donald Trump rolled back environmental regulations during his four year term while frequently downplaying the dangers of climate change and embracing fossil fuels. The Biden administration rejoined the Paris climate agreement on day one. Trump had left the international accord and claimed that it was damaging to U.S. interests.
What is the crisis, how is it an “exustential threat” and what will closing ANWR and the pipeline actually do for the environment? The debate never centres on the pros and cons, it is always about fear. I don’t like it. I am over it. I am no longer a climate worrier. I no longer worry about it at all.