Grist, the digital, the environmental magazine, asked a number of green-oriented leaders to see what they recommend going forward in dealing with climate change. One of those who replied was Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, Democratic senator from Rhode Island. Since April 2012, he has given a climate speech in the Senate every week it is in session, more than 140 times altogether:
Well, we had horrible election results for climate change, but even in light of the election I think there is room to go forward. We’ll have to do a couple of things.
The first thing we’ll all have to do is mobilize. Nobody can count on President Obama to get this done for us. We’ll have to join environmental groups, make sure our voices are heard, and get involved.
Second, I can tell you a dirty little secret from my position in the Senate, and that is: The good corporate actors on climate don’t bring that message to Congress. There is almost no positive corporate lobbying about climate change in Congress. That leaves the field entirely to the fossil fuel industry. So we need to put pressure on the corporations who signed the President’s Paris pledge to get to work in Congress and make their voices heard, as well.
The last thing I’ll say is: I think we need to change the narrative a little bit and make sure that Americans are aware of this phony baloney climate denial apparatus that the fossil fuel industry has set up. It shouldn’t be allowed to work in the dark. We should call it out, and we should honor and cite the work of scientists who are examining it. What makes me excited and gives me determination is that we need to get this done to make sure our country keeps a leading role in the world. And everywhere I go — Republican or Democrat, west, east, north, south, urban, rural — young people get this. So we need to pull together and get this done. We can and we will.
Here’s more details from Whitehouse on what needs to be done. And here is a video of his July 6, 2016, speech in the Senate in which he details the people funding climate denial.
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At Daily Kos on this date in 2011—Super Congress failed because of Republican allegiance to Grover Norquist:
The stupid is on full display today as the punditry bemoans the death of the Super Congress, mournfully declaring that it was just that both sides were so entrenched in protecting entitlements versus tax increases. So let's just try to inject a little reality into this. First, the always helpful deficit parfait chart from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.
That black line at the very bottom, the one that stays pretty damned stable, includes the contribution of things like Medicaid and Medicare entitlements. Not Social Security mind you, because Social Security still doesn't contribute to the deficit. That's a conveniently forgotten fact by everyone who insisted on plopping it down on the negotiating table, Democrat and Republican alike. So yes, the big drivers of the deficit continue to be the Bush tax cuts, the wars and the ongoing economic downturn. But mostly, it's those tax cuts.
On today’s Kagro in the Morning show: Donald Trump is corrupt AF! And you’ll need to know all the ways in which that’s true before your relatives arrive for T-day. Armando joined for an extensive discussion of emoluments, Trump Tower Buenos Aires, diplomatic community graft, and more!
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