Environmental activists march through the international local weather strike in downtown Chicago on September 15, 2023. Native teams are gathering throughout the US to name for an finish to the fossil gasoline period.
Kamil Krzaczynski/AFP by way of Getty Pictures
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Kamil Krzaczynski/AFP by way of Getty Pictures
Environmental activists march through the international local weather strike in downtown Chicago on September 15, 2023. Native teams are gathering throughout the US to name for an finish to the fossil gasoline period.
Kamil Krzaczynski/AFP by way of Getty Pictures
This text initially appeared within the NPR Politics publication. Subscribe to the publication right here For early entry and extra protection of the largest problems with 2024.
The local weather is altering. That is one thing all present presidential candidates can agree on.
However that is so far as the similarities go.
In some key swing states and congressional races, the hole between Republicans and Democrats on the problem could also be sufficient to tip the scales by November 2024.
Within the first GOP major debate on August 23, moderators struggled to get clear solutions to the query “Do you consider human conduct is inflicting local weather change?”
Businessman Vivek Ramaswamy has largely rejected insurance policies aimed toward tackling local weather change altogether, calling the “local weather change agenda” a “hoax”. Different candidates consider the nation ought to take motion, however the problem takes secondary significance to the financial system and immigration.
There may be overwhelming scientific consensus that local weather change is brought on by human actions, primarily the burning of fossil fuels. China at present produces the very best stage of carbon emissions on this planet, adopted by the US and India. However the US could be very a lot the identical Largest historical shareholder to local weather change, and have a lot increased per capita emissions.
When Republicans push for local weather motion, they are saying the main target ought to be on pressuring China and India to scrub up their act. Most GOP platforms additionally name for rising home vitality manufacturing by way of enlargement of nuclear energy and pure gasoline — whereas persevering with to depend on fossil fuels. However they oppose Biden-era rules and subsidies to stimulate clear vitality manufacturing and electrical car manufacturing.
Biden and his supporters have been on the marketing campaign path to tout these investments made within the Inflation Management Act — which, regardless of its title, is definitely an enormous local weather legislation aimed toward encouraging the transition to scrub vitality. Nonetheless, some Democratic-leaning voters say Biden has not accomplished sufficient to scale back emissions.
Typically, local weather is just not a macro-level driving power for US elections. Nevertheless it is a matter At the forefront of young voters’ concerns Throughout occasion affiliations. Folks of colour, who are sometimes essentially the most affected by the consequences of local weather change, and ladies additionally constantly say this problem ought to be a precedence.
Whether or not or not these demographics emerge might make a distinction in states the place victories happen on the margins.
The place do the candidates stand?
For greater than a decade, the Republican Celebration has largely rejected the science of local weather change or resisted motion to restrict its results. Some climate-conscious Republicans see any acknowledgment of the problem by their presidential candidates as an indication of progress the occasion is making.
Learn extra about what the candidates take into consideration local weather change, and what they need to do about it, right here.
In numbers
80% of Democrats They are saying tackling local weather change have to be a precedence even with the danger of an financial slowdown.
whereas, 72% of Republicans They are saying the financial system ought to be a precedence, even on the threat of ignoring local weather change, based on an August NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist ballot.