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Biden could declare climate emergency as soon as this week, sources say

cigaretteman

HR King
May 29, 2001
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President Biden is considering declaring a national climate emergency as soon as this week as he seeks to salvage his environmental agenda in the wake of stalled talks on Capitol Hill, according to three people familiar with the matter who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the private deliberations.
10 steps you can take to lower your carbon footprint
The potential move comes days after Sen. Joe Manchin III (D-W.Va.) told Democratic leaders that he does not support his party’s efforts to advance a sprawling economic package this month that includes billions of dollars to address global warming. If an emergency is invoked, it could empower the Biden administration in its efforts to reduce carbon emissions and foster cleaner energy.
Two of the individuals with knowledge of the discussions said also they expect the president to announce a slew of additional actions aimed at curbing planet-warming emissions. The exact scope and timing of any announcements remain in flux.
“The president made clear that if the Senate doesn’t act to tackle the climate crisis and strengthen our domestic clean energy industry, he will,” a White House official, who requested anonymity to describe the deliberations, said in a statement late Monday. “We are considering all options and no decision has been made.”
Jared Bernstein, a top White House economic adviser, emphasized to reporters at a news briefing earlier in the day that Biden would work “aggressively fight to attack climate change.”
“I think realistically there is a lot he can do and there is a lot he will do,” Bernstein said.
Top aides to Biden are debating the best course of action as another punishing heat wave has descended this week on the central United States, and as a similar weather pattern is breaking temperature records across Europe. Many Democrats have called on the White House in recent days to use its powers to address global warming as hopes for congressional action have faded.
“This is an important moment. There is probably nothing more important for our nation and our world than for the United States to drive a bold, energetic transition in its energy economy from fossil fuels to renewable energy,” Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) told reporters Monday.
Citing the impasse, Merkley added: “This also unchains the president from waiting for Congress to act.”
It is unclear how, exactly, Biden plans to proceed if he opts to declare a climate emergency, which Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) urged him to do just days after the president took office last year.
Biden's plan to curb catastrophic warming is running out of time
Some climate activists have urged the White House in recent months to deploy an emergency declaration to maximum effect, arguing that it would allow the president to halt crude oil exports, limit oil and gas drilling in federal waters, and direct agencies including the Federal Emergency Management Agency to boost renewable-energy sources.
But the president faces a tough balancing act as he seeks to calibrate his response to a warming planet with the recent economic reality of high gas prices. The policies could aid in Biden’s quest to halve U.S. emissions by the end of the decade compared to 2005 levels, though they still fall short of what Biden aimed to enact through his earlier economic plan, known as Build Back Better.
Any new executive action on climate also could face a formidable court challenge, which could affect the future of environmental regulations. Last month, the Supreme Court cut back the federal government’s powers to regulate power plants’ carbon emissions.


The president himself raised the prospect of executive action on climate change last week, as talks collapsed between Democratic leaders and Manchin over what might have been the largest infusion of climate-related spending in U.S. history.
Initially, Democrats had hoped to invest more than $500 billion in new programs to cut emissions and support new technologies, including electric vehicles, before Manchin raised objections to the Build Back Better Act. The West Virginian’s opposition proved politically fatal, since party lawmakers require his vote to advance any bill using the process known as reconciliation — a tactic that allows Democrats to sidestep a GOP filibuster in the narrowly divided chamber.
Democrats soon set about rethinking their plans, eyeing what might have been $300 billion in climate-focused investments in a bid to satisfy Manchin. But the moderate senator, who represents a coal-heavy state, last week said he could not support his party’s attempts to advance such spending this month amid record-high inflation.
Manchin later expressed an openness to tackling climate change but said he would do so only after seeing another round of indicators next month. But many Democrats said they did not want to take the risk, leaving them no choice but to shelve their plans entirely — and focus their attention instead on health-care proposals Manchin does support.
Others called for another round of engagement with the senator, citing the fact that executive action alone may not be enough.
Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), the leader of the tax-focused Senate Finance Committee, said in a statement Monday that lawmakers at least should explore renewing tax credits that boost cleaner technology.
“While I strongly support additional executive action by President Biden, we know a flood of Republican lawsuits will follow,” Wyden said. “Legislation continues to be the best option here. The climate crisis is the issue of our time and we should keep our options open.”

 
And suits will be filed and injunctions sought while voters are reminded about SCOTUS limiting EPA’s power to be involved with “climate emergencies”.
Yep turn off your heat - right before you go to the voting booth 🤔🤗
 
Yay more power to the federal govt.

Let me guess the government is gonna throw a whole bunch of money at an issue without paying for it and in the end the middle class gets screwed and your kids get more national debt to pay off. Meanwhile Biden and Pelosi will champion the new campaign all while owning 25,000 sq ft of houses and flying on private jets weekly.

O/U on times you hear the phrase existential threat?
 
Do we get $900 credit for an ebike or student loan forgiveness or free daycare like all the stupid shit in the BBB “infrastructure” bill?

Nuclear plants being built ? (Only real solution).

it’s like he lays awake at night dreaming up shit to get killed even more in November.
 
Do we get $900 credit for an ebike or student loan forgiveness or free daycare like all the stupid shit in the BBB “infrastructure” bill?

Nuclear plants being built ? (Only real solution).

it’s like he lays awake at night dreaming up shit to get killed even more in November.

"it’s like he lays awake at night dreaming up shit to get killed even more in November."

Break out the popcorn!
 
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John Kerry’s family private jet has emitted over 300 metric tons of carbon since Biden took office. You‘d think the climate change activists would be leading the charge to reduce their carbon footprint rather than adding to it.
 
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Yay more power to the federal govt.

Let me guess the government is gonna throw a whole bunch of money at an issue without paying for it and in the end the middle class gets screwed and your kids get more national debt to pay off. Meanwhile Biden and Pelosi will champion the new campaign all while owning 25,000 sq ft of houses and flying on private jets weekly.

O/U on times you hear the phrase existential threat?
Biden flies weekly on a private jet?
John Kerry’s family private jet has emitted over 300 metric tons of carbon since Biden took office. You‘d think the climate change activists would be leading the charge to reduce their carbon footprint rather than adding to it.

An emoticon is your answer?
Classic tu quoque fallacy.
 
Lol easy once again for deniers to sit here in the relative calm of the upper Midwest throwing out their ignorant comments about climate change being a hoax.
Tell that to the folks in the south who are baking under unprecedented heat . Or in Arizona or California where even further water restrictions will go into affect next year. Or the folks near the great Salt Lake which is disappearing before our very eyes . Or temperatures hotter than ever recorded in history in the UK. Massive wildfires in Southern Europe , Alaska , and other parts of the west .
altered weather patterns, causing worse famine in Africa and the Middle East. Floods in China.
How bad will it have to get before people start recognizing we are in serious crisis right now! Not in ten or twenty years . The policies of a few corrupt politicians who have the fossil fuel industry in their back pockets are dooming this planet and sabotaging it for our children and grandchildren. Once again people won’t wake the hell up til it’s too late and the problem is on their own backyards. Sad
 
Hasn’t this Court already pretty much signaled, “Don’t do this”?
Yup, and the Administration gives away their intent, which flies in the face of SCOTUS rulings. The Federal Judges will say this is just trying to go around Congress, and how is it an emergency?
 
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IMO Biden would be crazy to stop gas exports and limit exploration in the middle of high gas prices and a war in Europe. Though maybe he thinks his ratings couldn't go any lower at this point.
 
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The US needs to get serious about energy independence and our over-reliance on fossil fuels. Subsidize renewables and prioritize the creation of nuclear energy facilities now. We should have been doing this 40 years ago.
 
And suits will be filed and injunctions sought while voters are reminded about SCOTUS limiting EPA’s power to be involved with “climate emergencies”.
Yep turn off your heat - right before you go to the voting booth 🤔🤗
Your kids and mine depend on our generation to do some good stuff for them.
Look long and hard at what is happening to weather systems worldwide.
I will not let them realize that we did not try…
 
IMO Biden would be crazy to stop gas exports and limit exploration in the middle of high gas prices and a war in Europe. Though maybe he thinks his ratings couldn't go any lower at this point.
Or maybe he doesn’t give two sh!ts about his rating anymore? Maybe for once a politician should be more worried about what’s the right thing to do rather than a PR campaign?
course that would involve any politician that was worth a Sh!t and not corrupt, which there’s not, so a moot point .
 
Your kids and mine depend on our generation to do some good stuff for them.
Look long and hard at what is happening to weather systems worldwide.
I will not let them realize that we did not try…
too bad only a few people can see the big picture nole….the time to pay the piper is rapidly coming to a world that is not prepared for the consequences of inaction.
 
Yup, and the Administration gives away their intent, which flies in the face of SCOTUS rulings. The Federal Judges will say this is just trying to go around Congress, and how is it an emergency?
You don’t think we are facing an emergency?
This shit is past getting real. I have kids that I will not look in the eye if we don’t try.
 
Between renewables and nuclear I think we could have energy independence. I say let’s do it
Encouraging signs here:


Fusion attracted $2.8bn [£2.5bn] over the past year, compared to around $2bn over the previous decade.

The Fusion Industry Association said more than 93 percent of companies that responded to its survey believe that fusion power will be feeding electricity into power grids by the 2030s.
 
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You don’t think we are facing an emergency?
This shit is past getting real. I have kids that I will not look in the eye if we don’t try.
Nope. We aren't facing an emergency of the kind that we can do anything about without destroying what we already have. I'm old enough to remember the warnings from the 70's and 80's about what was going to happen in the 90's. The opposite happened. We can and should do what we can but if we destroy our economy, those efforts will fall short very quickly.

Do you know how much CO2 is emitted in shipping a tanker of oil to the US? If there's such an emergency, why not produce more in the US instead of importing it? If there's such an emergency, why weren't rules suspended to not allow the auctioning of strategic oils reserves that were going to be exported? If there's such an emergency, why are US refineries being made to produce more ethanol, which is less efficient than non-ethanol?

The only reason an emergency is being declared is exactly what the Administration is saying, and that's because Congress isn't doing anything. Congress is all caught up in January 6th hearings, creating legislation to ultimately enrich its members, and finding more ways to create deficit spending special interest earmarks.
 
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Renewing tax credits seems reasonable. Seems like legal challenges would stop much more than that.

Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), the leader of the tax-focused Senate Finance Committee, said in a statement Monday that lawmakers at least should explore renewing tax credits that boost cleaner technology.
“While I strongly support additional executive action by President Biden, we know a flood of Republican lawsuits will follow,” Wyden said. “Legislation continues to be the best option here. The climate crisis is the issue of our time and we should keep our options open.”
 
President Biden is considering declaring a national climate emergency as soon as this week as he seeks to salvage his environmental agenda in the wake of stalled talks on Capitol Hill, according to three people familiar with the matter who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the private deliberations.
10 steps you can take to lower your carbon footprint
The potential move comes days after Sen. Joe Manchin III (D-W.Va.) told Democratic leaders that he does not support his party’s efforts to advance a sprawling economic package this month that includes billions of dollars to address global warming. If an emergency is invoked, it could empower the Biden administration in its efforts to reduce carbon emissions and foster cleaner energy.
Two of the individuals with knowledge of the discussions said also they expect the president to announce a slew of additional actions aimed at curbing planet-warming emissions. The exact scope and timing of any announcements remain in flux.
“The president made clear that if the Senate doesn’t act to tackle the climate crisis and strengthen our domestic clean energy industry, he will,” a White House official, who requested anonymity to describe the deliberations, said in a statement late Monday. “We are considering all options and no decision has been made.”
Jared Bernstein, a top White House economic adviser, emphasized to reporters at a news briefing earlier in the day that Biden would work “aggressively fight to attack climate change.”
“I think realistically there is a lot he can do and there is a lot he will do,” Bernstein said.
Top aides to Biden are debating the best course of action as another punishing heat wave has descended this week on the central United States, and as a similar weather pattern is breaking temperature records across Europe. Many Democrats have called on the White House in recent days to use its powers to address global warming as hopes for congressional action have faded.
“This is an important moment. There is probably nothing more important for our nation and our world than for the United States to drive a bold, energetic transition in its energy economy from fossil fuels to renewable energy,” Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) told reporters Monday.
Citing the impasse, Merkley added: “This also unchains the president from waiting for Congress to act.”
It is unclear how, exactly, Biden plans to proceed if he opts to declare a climate emergency, which Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) urged him to do just days after the president took office last year.
Biden's plan to curb catastrophic warming is running out of time
Some climate activists have urged the White House in recent months to deploy an emergency declaration to maximum effect, arguing that it would allow the president to halt crude oil exports, limit oil and gas drilling in federal waters, and direct agencies including the Federal Emergency Management Agency to boost renewable-energy sources.
But the president faces a tough balancing act as he seeks to calibrate his response to a warming planet with the recent economic reality of high gas prices. The policies could aid in Biden’s quest to halve U.S. emissions by the end of the decade compared to 2005 levels, though they still fall short of what Biden aimed to enact through his earlier economic plan, known as Build Back Better.
Any new executive action on climate also could face a formidable court challenge, which could affect the future of environmental regulations. Last month, the Supreme Court cut back the federal government’s powers to regulate power plants’ carbon emissions.


The president himself raised the prospect of executive action on climate change last week, as talks collapsed between Democratic leaders and Manchin over what might have been the largest infusion of climate-related spending in U.S. history.
Initially, Democrats had hoped to invest more than $500 billion in new programs to cut emissions and support new technologies, including electric vehicles, before Manchin raised objections to the Build Back Better Act. The West Virginian’s opposition proved politically fatal, since party lawmakers require his vote to advance any bill using the process known as reconciliation — a tactic that allows Democrats to sidestep a GOP filibuster in the narrowly divided chamber.
Democrats soon set about rethinking their plans, eyeing what might have been $300 billion in climate-focused investments in a bid to satisfy Manchin. But the moderate senator, who represents a coal-heavy state, last week said he could not support his party’s attempts to advance such spending this month amid record-high inflation.
Manchin later expressed an openness to tackling climate change but said he would do so only after seeing another round of indicators next month. But many Democrats said they did not want to take the risk, leaving them no choice but to shelve their plans entirely — and focus their attention instead on health-care proposals Manchin does support.
Others called for another round of engagement with the senator, citing the fact that executive action alone may not be enough.
Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), the leader of the tax-focused Senate Finance Committee, said in a statement Monday that lawmakers at least should explore renewing tax credits that boost cleaner technology.
“While I strongly support additional executive action by President Biden, we know a flood of Republican lawsuits will follow,” Wyden said. “Legislation continues to be the best option here. The climate crisis is the issue of our time and we should keep our options open.”

I've been calling for this for a while.

I've also been saying he should wait until after the midterms. But I may have been wrong about that.

While Dems will be attacked if Biden does this, at least they will be attacked on a genuinely important issue and not on woke this and defund that. Rs are killing them on those issues, even when the Ds are right. And they are trivial issues.

This is arguably the most serious issue facing America and the world. And while a couple others are also important (war, pandemic, inflation), this one is always a top concern while others come and go.

Bottom line: if you are going to lose, at least go down swinging for the fences.
 
Nope. We aren't facing an emergency of the kind that we can do anything about without destroying what we already have. I'm old enough to remember the warnings from the 70's and 80's about what was going to happen in the 90's. The opposite happened. We can and should do what we can but if we destroy our economy, those efforts will fall short very quickly.

Do you know how much CO2 is emitted in shipping a tanker of oil to the US? If there's such an emergency, why not produce more in the US instead of importing it? If there's such an emergency, why weren't rules suspended to not allow the auctioning of strategic oils reserves that were going to be exported? If there's such an emergency, why are US refineries being made to produce more ethanol, which is less efficient than non-ethanol?

The only reason an emergency is being declared is exactly what the Administration is saying, and that's because Congress isn't doing anything. Congress is all caught up in January 6th hearings, creating legislation to ultimately enrich its members, and finding more ways to create deficit spending special interest earmarks.
So, you don’t think we are facing an emergency.
What we already have is dying before your eyes. It does not compute.
No weather pattern today resembles one 50 years ago. Or 30 years ago. I figured you as one with native roots in North Florida. No?
Next up, the Gulf Stream will be interrupted. Just wait for the consequences.

You wanna continue oil? Nothing about oil for transportation is gonna work going forward.
 
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