The horrific effects of Hurricane Dorian are yet another reminder of why the climate crisis deserves far more attention than it received in the presidential campaign in 2016. In this case, “more” would also be “any.” Unbelievably, during the series of debates between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, moderators asked exactly zero questions about the climate crisis—though Clinton was taken to task for being insufficiently friendly to coal.
There’s still no guarantee that when a Democratic nominee finally stands on the stage with Trump—assuming Trump deigns to even have debates—that the ever-thoughtful moderators won’t ask why Democrats aren’t spending more time addressing the important issues, like giving more public land to oil companies and subsidies for whaling ships. But at least tonight the focus is going to be solidly on a little thing that happens to be an existential issue for the nation, human civilization, and perhaps human beings as a species.
CNN’s climate crisis town hall begins early for those on the West Coast, and goes late for those on the East. But there’s an opportunity to see the same candidates who will be on the September debate stage handling questions about this critical topic.
Time (eastern) |
Candidate |
5:00 PM |
Julian Castro |
5:40 PM |
Andrew Yang |
6:20 PM |
Kamala Harris |
7:00 PM |
Amy Klobuchar |
8:00 PM |
Joe Biden |
8:40 PM |
Bernie Sanders |
9:20 PM |
Elizabeth Warren |
10:00 PM |
Pete Buttigieg |
10:40 PM |
Beto O’Rourke |
11:20 PM |
Cory Booker |
In the last day, Elizabeth Warren has expanded her plan for dealing with this crisis to include many parts of the proposal formally championed by former candidate Jay Inslee. But the fantastic thing is that every Democratic candidate recognizes the importance of this issue. And candidates have adopted the approach set forth in the Green New Deal, understanding that dealing with the climate crisis isn’t just a matter of placing a tax on carbon and calling it done. This is an issue that touches on all aspects of our future, from the environment to energy to education to the economy to equity and more; dealing with it means creating a plan that recognizes both individuals and communities at risk and creating opportunities for growth and remediation.
These aren’t just plans for addressing the climate crisis. These are plans for revolutionary change that defines the nation’s future.
It’s too bad that, so far at least, there isn’t a dedicated debate on this topic. But at least in this format candidates may not be forced to shove their answers into 30 seconds and won’t be encouraged to turn their ideas into an attack on another Democratic candidate.