The crisis demands an end to the filibuster in the Senate, says the Democratic presidential candidate
By PEMA LEVY
Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, a Democratic presidential candidate focused on climate change, argued Sunday that the Senate will have to abolish the filibuster in order to tackle the issue. “We’re not going to get anywhere as long as Mitch McConnell has the keys to the car,” he said during an interview at South by Southwest in Austin, Texas.
Whereas other Democratic candidates are not running for the White House as single-issue candidates, Inslee’s campaign prioritizes the existential threat of global warming. The “first and paramount duty of the next president has to be to tackle climate change,” he said on Sunday. He warned that progress won’t be made unless the Senate removes the 60-vote threshold for passing legislation known as the filibuster, a long-standing procedural hurdle that requires 60 senators to agree to move legislation to a vote. Inslee, who noted he is the only 2020 candidate who supports ending the filibuster, called on other Democratic presidential contenders to join him.
There was some good news for Inslee in the new Des Moine Register poll out today.
Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, who announced his run last week, also gets a boost. The percentage of those who view him favorably rose by 6 points to 17 percent, though he’s largely unknown. Seventy-five percent do not know enough about him to say whether they like him or not.
Climate Change was Iowa voters number two issue.
Eighty percent of poll respondents say candidates should spend “a lot” of time talking about climate change. Ninety-one percent say they prefer a candidate who supports the "Green New Deal," which couples government programs to address climate change with support for jobs in the clean energy sector to help address poverty. That includes 65 percent who favor a candidate who supports the "Green New Deal" in full and 26 percent who favor approaching it in steps.
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