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For Immediate Release
September, 04 2019, 12:00am EDT
Contact:
Ryan Schleeter, Senior Communications Specialist, Greenpeace USA: +1 (415) 342-2386, ryan.schleeter@greenpeace.org
WASHINGTON
Just in time for tonight's CNN Climate Town Hall, Democratic presidential candidates Cory Booker, Elizabeth Warren, Pete Buttigieg, Amy Klobuchar, Julian Castro, and Kamala Harris have all released new climate plans, causing a flurry of movement on Greenpeace's 2020 Climate Ranking. The most significant movement comes from Elizabeth Warren, who is now in second place behind Bernie Sanders. Also making big jumps are Kamala Harris, who is now in fifth place, and Julian Castro, who is now in eighth place.
The updated top ten in Greenpeace's 2020 climate ranking is as follows:
1. Sanders, 87/100, A
2. Warren, 84/100, A-
3. Booker, 82.5/100, A-
4. Steyer, 79/100, B+
5. Harris, 72.5/100, B+
6. Biden, 72/100, B+
7. Gabbard, 69.5/100, B
8. Castro, 68.5/100, B
9. Buttigieg, 66/100, B
10. Williamson, 64/100, B
11. O'Rourke, 60.5/100, B-
12. Klobuchar, 52.5/100, C+
13. Yang, 47/100, C+
The climate crisis has emerged as a top issue in the 2020 election. In the most recent Quinnipiac poll, a majority of registered voters said climate change is an "emergency" and 67 percent said they believe that the United States under the Trump administration is not doing enough to address the problem.
In response to the new plans and rankings, Greenpeace USA Senior Climate Campaigner Jack Shapiro said:
"As fires rage in the Amazon and Hurricane Dorian threatens the Southeast after pummeling the Bahamas, the gravity of the climate crisis is impossible to ignore for everyone but Donald Trump. At this stage in the race, no serious candidate can afford to put climate policy on the backburner. Voters are demanding to know how the next president will protect communities from further climate-fueled storms, droughts, heatwaves, and fires. We're glad to see these candidates bringing their contributions to the table this week, and we look forward to seeing them answer important questions about their platforms at tonight's CNN Town Hall.
"With the rush of new plans over the past few days, we can now see how grassroots pressure has helped move the baseline climate positions for serious Democratic presidential candidates. Nearly every real contender for the nomination now has a plan that includes a strong emphasis on justice and equity for communities on the frontlines of climate disasters, a commitment to securing a future for workers with family-sustaining, union jobs with benefits, and a promise to end tax giveaways, federal leases, and new permits for fossil fuel extractors.
"Despite this extraordinary progress, we still have yet to see a candidate match Jay Inslee's gold standard commitment to ending the era of fossil fuels for good in the United States by phasing out production. The remaining contenders still have room for improvement, and we hope they'll continue to listen to grassroots activists and communities with the most to lose from the climate crisis.
"We were notably impressed by the sections of Kamala Harris's plan which included the novel proposal to convene a global negotiation on a managed decline of fossil fuel production. Her plan also included a push to end global financing and subsidies for fossil fuels, as well as a phase-out of existing US federal leases. We also noted Cory Booker's proposal to reform bankruptcy rules for fossil fuel companies so they can't escape obligations to workers and the environment.
"At the end of the day, the real question to ask is: who is willing to use all the tools of the federal government to invest in an unprecedented but absolutely necessary transformation away from fossil fuels to an equitable and 100% renewable future? That's what we hope to hear in detail during tonight's Town Hall, and it's what we'll continue to push for as we head into the general election against one of the most disastrous administrations for climate and the environment we've ever seen."
Additional changes covered in this update to the ranking include Amy Klobuchar moving into twelfth place, and Pete Buttigieg jumping up to ninth place.
Greenpeace is a global, independent campaigning organization that uses peaceful protest and creative communication to expose global environmental problems and promote solutions that are essential to a green and peaceful future.
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Trump Is Dismantling US Democracy at a Speed 'Unprecedented in Modern History': Watchdog
"Our data on the USA goes back to 1789. What we're seeing now is the most severe magnitude of democratic backsliding ever in the country."
Mar 17, 2026
A report released on Tuesday by the V-Dem Institute at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden has found that President Donald Trump and his administration are dismantling democracy in the US at a speed that "is unprecedented in modern history."
In its report, V-Dem categorizes the first year of Trump's second term as "a rapid and aggressive concentration of powers in the presidency."
In fact, V-Dem says that the Trump administration has accomplished in just one year what most budding autocracies take a decade to achieve, adding that "the speed of decline is comparable to some coups d´état."
Of particular concern is the failure of the legislative branch of the US government to apply any kind of oversight or check upon the executive branch, the report explains.
"The Republican-controlled Congress seems to have abdicated its constitutional role in favor of the executive branch, ceding significant legislative, fiscal, and oversight powers during 2025," the report says. "The Trump administration has de facto repeatedly taken over the Congressional 'power of the purse'—enshrined in the Constitution and in the 1974 Impoundment Control Act—unilaterally cancelling or reallocating federal funding."
The report also points fingers at the US Senate for repeatedly rolling over and confirming unqualified Trump nominees, which it says is tantamount to letting the White House “sideline” the upper chamber’s authority altogether.
V-Dem goes on to document the administration's repeated assaults on the judicial branch and the rule of law in general during his second term, starting when Trump issued a mass pardon to more than 1,500 alleged or convicted criminals who stormed the US Capitol on January 6, 2021.
Since then, the administration has waged a pressure campaign against judges who rule against it consisting of "impeachment resolutions and misconduct complaints," while also using executive orders to punish major law firms simply for representing the president's political enemies in court.
The lone bright spot in US democracy, says V-Dem, is that the administration has not yet been able to attack states' powers to administer their own elections, although not for lack of effort.
"Actions taken in 2025 raise concerns regarding the integrity of the 2026 midterms," the report warns. "This primarily concerns attempts to assert federal control over election processes, which must be decentralized and state-run, according to the Constitution."
The report notes that Trump has issued an executive order that attempts to override states' election laws by restricting mail-in voting and mandating voter IDs at polling places nationwide, but adds that "many provisions of this order have been blocked and others are still being challenged in federal court."
In an interview with The Guardian, V-Dem founder Staffan Lindberg used historical context to explain why Trump's assault on US democracy is truly without precedent.
"Our data on the USA goes back to 1789," he said. "What we’re seeing now is the most severe magnitude of democratic backsliding ever in the country."
He also said that other authoritarian leaders have taken much more time in ripping down their states' democratic institutions than Trump has.
"For Orbán in Hungary, it took about four years," Lindberg said, "for Vučić in Serbia, it took eight years, and for Erdoğan in Turkey and Modi in India, it took about 10 years to accomplish the suppression of democratic institutions that Trump has achieved in only one year."
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Mar 17, 2026
The United Nations World Food Program warned Tuesday that the US-Israeli war on Iran and its cascading impacts on the global economy could push 45 million more people into acute hunger this year.
WFP said in a statement that while the war "involves a global energy hub and not a breadbasket region, the potential impact is similar because energy and food markets are tightly correlated." The organization pointed to Iran's retaliatory closure of the Strait of Hormuz as a key factor in rising energy and fertilizer costs, which can drive up food prices.
Carl Skau, WFP's deputy executive director and chief operating officer, said that "if this conflict continues, it will send shockwaves across the globe, and families who already cannot afford their next meal will be hit the hardest."
"Without an adequately funded humanitarian response," Skau added, "it could spell catastrophe for millions already on the edge."
WFP provided a breakdown of where and how much acute hunger is expected to rise if the war—now in its third week—does not end by the middle of 2026:
- Asia: 10 countries analyzed; 9.1 million people could be pushed into acute food insecurity, which is a 24% increase;
- East and Southern Africa: 16 countries analyzed; 17.7 million people could be pushed into acute food insecurity, which is a 17.7% increase;
- Latin America and the Caribbean: 3 countries analyzed; 2.2 million people could be pushed into acute food insecurity, which is a 16% increase;
- Middle East and North Africa: 12 countries analyzed; 5.2 million people could be pushed into acute food insecurity, which is a 14% increase; and
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The illegal US-Israeli assault on Iran has already displaced more than 3 million Iranians, sparking fears of a massive refugee crisis. Hundreds of thousands have also been displaced in Lebanon, where Israel is expanding its aggressive aerial and ground attacks.
Aline Kamakian, a member of the World Central Kitchen Chef Corps who is leading the group's response to the escalating humanitarian disaster in Lebanon, said in a statement that "the official figures likely don’t capture the full scale of displacement."
“My biggest concern now is how long this conflict will last," said Kamakian. "Every day, more families arrive in Beirut, but there is already a shortage of housing and basic infrastructure to support so many people. Many have lost their homes and don’t know where they will go next. At the same time, the economy is collapsing—restaurants are empty, businesses are struggling, and next week is normally a period when tourists arrive and the city comes alive."
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"He’s at war in Iran without congressional authorization. He overthrew Venezuela by force. He threatened to invade a NATO ally. Now he wants to take Cuba and thinks he can do 'anything he wants' with it."
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US President Donald Trump told reporters on Monday that he believes he will have "the honor of taking Cuba" and that he "can do anything" he wants with the island, as the nation of 11 million people faced a large-scale blackout and a humanitarian crisis intensified by the Trump administration's oil embargo.
"It's a beautiful island, great weather," Trump said of Cuba, whose economy has been strangled by decades of US economic warfare. "I do believe... I'll be having the honor of taking Cuba."
Asked to clarify what he meant by "taking" Cuba, Trump said: "Taking Cuba. I mean, whether I free it, take it—I think I can do anything I want with it, if you want to know the truth. A very weakened nation."
Watch:
Trump: Cuba, it's a beautiful island. Great weather. I will be having the honor of taking Cuba. Whether I free it, take it. I think I can do anything I want with it, if you want to know the truth pic.twitter.com/Po7J9tJMr2
— Acyn (@Acyn) March 16, 2026
"Dear god," responded David Adler, co-general coordinator of Progressive International. "Donald Trump is once again announcing his plans for a violent invasion of Cuba. We must stop him. To stand up for Cuba—against this malignant colonial mindset—is to stand up for all of humanity."
Trump's remarks came as Cuba faced an island-wide blackout caused by what the government called "complete disconnection" of the nation's electrical system. According to Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel, the country hasn't received an oil shipment in over three months due to the Trump administration's embargo, which began shortly after the US abducted Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in January and set its sights on the island as its next target.
"Cuba is ready to fall," Trump said hours after the kidnapping of Maduro.
The New York Times reported Monday that the Trump administration is seeking to remove Diaz-Canel from power in ongoing talks with the nation's government.
"In the view of some Trump administration officials, removing Cuba’s head of state would allow structural economic changes in the country that Mr. Díaz-Canel, whom the officials consider a hard-liner, is unlikely to support," the Times reported. "If the Cubans agree, it would result in the first major political shake-up arising from talks between the two countries since those began a few months ago."
Trump's latest threat to seize Cuba came as his administration continued to wage war on Iran, a deadly assault that was not authorized by the US Congress and is illegal under international law.
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"They took the same oath I did. Every single one of them who stays silent owns this," Levin added. "A Congress that won’t stop a president who answers to no one isn’t a coequal branch. It’s an accomplice."
Last week, a trio of Senate Democrats introduced a war powers resolution aimed at preventing Trump from attacking Cuba, but the measure likely faces the same fate as previous resolutions on Venezuela and Iran in the Republican-controlled chamber.
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