In a tight Democratic congressional primary race between the incumbent Debbie Wasserman Schultz, former chair of the Democratic National Committee, and Tim Canova, a professor of law and longtime populist champion, Canova has won the endorsement of The Climate Mobilization, a growing grassroots advocacy group calling for a national effort against climate change on the scale of America’s economic mobilization during World II.
The primary election for Florida’s 23rd congressional district will be held on Tuesday, August 30.
Like Bernie Sanders, Tim has tapped into voters’ massive dissatisfaction with the status quo, leading an insurgent campaign that has captured the country’s attention.
Going beyond Senator Sanders on climate change, Tim has adopted an environmental platform that meets the historic challenge of the climate emergency by calling for a wartime-scale national effort to reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2025.
Watch Tim's call for a WWII-scale Climate Mobilization here:
Tim signed the The Climate Mobilization’s Pledge to Mobilize in March 2016, but he has been championing large-scale action against climate change for years. And he knows the importance of emergency action on the scale of WWII – rising seawaters already threaten his district in South Florida.
“We already see the erosion of our seawalls, corrosion of critical infrastructure, and salt water intruding into the aquifers we rely on for our drinking water,” Canova said in a campaign video.
The Climate Mobilization’s endorsement of Canova came after the Democratic National Committee voted last month to adopt an amendment calling for WWII-scale climate mobilization into the Democratic party’s national platform, which was introduced by climate activist Russell Greene.
“We know that when Tim gets into office he’ll work as hard as he possibly can to make Russell Greene’s WWII-scale climate mobilization amendment to the Democratic Party's national platform a reality,” wrote The Climate Mobilization’s co-founders Margaret Klein Salamon and Ezra Silk in a statement. “That’s why we are so thrilled to endorse his bid for the House.”
“In an era of catastrophic gradualism and lethal cowardice, Tim has taken a tremendously courageous stand for climate truth and justice. If we are going to have a future, we will need hundreds of principled politicians like Tim Canova in Congress fighting for the WWII-scale climate mobilization required to save civilization and the natural world. We want to see him leading the charge in Congress.”
Canova’s climate change platform reads:
Climate change is a global challenge. Here in South Florida, it is not simply a theoretical problem, but a very real and growing threat to our homes, businesses and neighborhoods. We already see the erosion of our seawalls, corrosion of critical infrastructure, and salt water intruding into the aquifers we rely on for our drinking water.
Yet, our elected officials have been slow to act. Addressing climate change must be a national priority. We need to reduce the emission of greenhouse gasses into the environment by aggressively reducing our dependence on fossil fuels and harmful environmental practices like fracking. [...]
We must focus our efforts on transitioning to sustainable, clean energy sources to power our future. For many years, I have supported a carbon tax, as well as cap-and-trade proposals. I reject arguments that somehow these initiatives would hamper our economy. There is no good reason for the U.S. to be lagging behind other major countries, like Germany, in converting to alternative, renewable energy sources. By allowing other countries to take the lead in the research, development and innovation of this growing market, we put our country’s role in developing these revolutionary technologies at risk.
The reality of climate change will demand that we make huge investments in critical infrastructure in the coming years, from reinforcing sea walls and raising streets to protecting our electrical grid and modernizing sewage and water treatment facilities. This is why I have taken the Climate Mobilization Pledge in support of a program on the scale of the World War II mobilization of human, industrial, and financial resources to restore a safe climate. I want the United States to have net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2025 and to make tremendous investments in carbon capture and sequestration technologies to actively remove carbon dioxide from our atmosphere.
While my opponent Debbie Wasserman Schultz says that she’s for addressing climate change and protecting our local environment, her words ring hollow in light of her actions. Despite stating on her official website that protecting the Everglades is a “fundamental responsibility” that she does not take lightly, my opponent is consistently ranked as one of members of the Congress who accepts the most money from the sugar lobby. She has voted multiple times to reauthorize and extend millions of dollars in corporate welfare to the sugar industry. Worse still, sugar producers have been identified as the chief polluters of the Everglades, an ecosystem that plays a critical role in in maintaining the health of the Biscayne Aquifer – the fresh water source for millions of Floridians.
When thinking of how to best address climate change I am reminded of a Greek proverb: “a society grows great when old men plant trees whose shade they know they shall never sit in.” When I am elected to Congress I will make sure we protect South Florida’s environment and stand up to the Big Sugar industry that threatens our fragile ecosystems and drinking water. I will not rest until our country makes serious progress to combat climate change and protect our environment, both locally and across the globe. Simply stated, climate change is a problem that South Florida must face head on, and I am committed to leading the charge so that future generations may continue to enjoy this planet we call home.