Pirate's Cove

We can expect news outlets like the Washington Post to continuously ask China Joe, Kamala, and the rest of the people who work for Joe when they will be giving up their own use of fossil fuels and making their own lives net zero, right?

Biden to Make Combatting Climate Change an ‘All-of-Government Agenda’

Former Vice President Joe Biden is preparing to make combatting climate change a centerpiece of his administration, with top aides signaling the topic is likely to consume all levels of the federal government.

Biden, who promised a New Deal-style approach to addressing climate issues on the campaign trail this year, has begun formulating a governing strategy to curb carbon emissions “even without congressional action, by maximizing executive authority,” according to the Washington Post.

“From the very beginning of the campaign, when President-elect Biden rolled out his climate plan, he made it clear he sees this as an all-of-government agenda – domestic, economic, foreign policy,” the Biden campaign’s policy director, Stef Feldman, told the outlet.

Although it remains unclear just how such an approach will look in execution, Biden’s promises on the campaign trail shed some light on the extent of his commitment to “environmental justice.” From promising to rejoin the Paris Climate Accord on his first day at the White House to pledging the creation of a new division within the Department of Justice to combat pollution, the former vice president has laid out an ambitious agenda on the climate.

The DOJ thing should be worrisome, where Biden plans to use the DOJ to go after climate-heretics.

Establish an Environmental and Climate Justice Division within the U.S. Department of Justice. Under the Trump Administration, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has referred the fewest number of criminal anti-pollution cases to the Justice Department (DOJ) in 30 years. Allowing corporations to continue to pollute – affecting the health and safety of both their workers and surrounding communities – without consequences, perpetuates an egregious abuse of power. Biden will direct his EPA and DOJ to pursue these cases to the fullest extent permitted by law and, when needed, seek additional legislation to hold corporate executives personally accountable – including jail time where merited. Going beyond the ambitious proposals that the Biden plan for a clean energy revolution already includes, the Biden Administration will establish a new Environmental and Climate Justice Division within the DOJ, as proposed by Governor Inslee, to complement the work of the Environment and Natural Resources Division. In line with the new Division’s mandate, Biden will instruct the Attorney General to: (i) implement, to the extent possible by executive action, Senator Booker’s Environmental Justice Act of 2019; (ii) increase enforcement, in line with the commitments already detailed in the Biden Plan; (iii) strategically support ongoing plaintiff-driven climate litigation against polluters; (iv) address legacy pollution that includes real remedies to make communities safe, healthy, and whole; and (v) work hand-in-hand with EPA’s Office of Civil Rights.

Booker’s EJA of 2019 is pretty darned extreme, and, it should disturb people that Joe wants to use the power of the federal government to support lawsuits against companies by private citizens, when they should be neutral bystanders. Joe also plans to increase the use of the EPA’s civil rights division. Not ominous at all.

Biden’s plan, heavily influenced by the recommendations of a unity task force set up earlier this year by the presumptive nominee and his vanquished primary rival, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), proposes spending $2 trillion over four years to combat climate change.

A major portion of the money will be used to create one million new jobs in the auto industry by boosting the production of energy-efficient vehicles. In order to achieve the goal, Biden is backing legislation, introduced by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), to incentivize individuals to trade in their gas-powered vehicles for ones running on either electricity or hydrogen.

As someone who sells them, not that many people want them. They do not even want hybrids that much right now. And most cannot afford nor want to pay $700 or more a month on a small plugin, plus the cost of electricity. I’ll consider it if Joe, Kamala, and the rest drive plugin vehicles themselves.