November, 25 2019, 11:00pm EDT
UN Climate Report Shows Urgent Need for Supply-Side Action
A new report from the United Nations warns that countries must take drastic action to rapidly curtail greenhouse gas emissions. The 'emissions gap' report underscores that countries must stop the development of planned or projected fossil fuel projects.
In response, Food & Water Action Climate & Energy Program Director Mitch Jones released the following statement:
WASHINGTON
A new report from the United Nations warns that countries must take drastic action to rapidly curtail greenhouse gas emissions. The 'emissions gap' report underscores that countries must stop the development of planned or projected fossil fuel projects.
In response, Food & Water Action Climate & Energy Program Director Mitch Jones released the following statement:
"The most urgent task for policymakers, political leaders and the global climate justice movement is to demand solutions that cut off the supply of fossil fuels at their source. We have no time left to waste on neoliberal market tweaks that only seek to saddle working families with paying the costs of climate action. The urgent, necessary solution is to stop the supply of fossil fuels by banning fracking and all other forms of fossil fuel drilling. Climate policy proposals that do not squarely confront the issue of supply are not making a serious attempt to avert catastrophe."
Food & Water Watch mobilizes regular people to build political power to move bold and uncompromised solutions to the most pressing food, water, and climate problems of our time. We work to protect people's health, communities, and democracy from the growing destructive power of the most powerful economic interests.
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Sen. Dianne Feinstein Dies at 90
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Sep 29, 2023
This is a breaking news story... Check back for updates...
Democratic U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, California's longest-serving senator, has died at 90 years old, news outlets reported on Friday.
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Sep 29, 2023
The Democratic chairs of leading congressional caucuses said late Thursday that they oppose any last-minute effort to cram immigration policy changes into government funding legislation as House and Senate Republicans consider doing just that, with a shutdown less than 48 hours away.
"It is not appropriate to establish new immigration and border policy in a bill to keep the government funded," the chairs of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, Congressional Hispanic Caucus, Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, and Congressional Black Caucus said in a joint statement.
"House Republicans cannot move their extreme, cruel, unworkable anti-immigrant agenda through the regular legislative process, so they're trying to make an end-run around Congress and hold the American people hostage to force it into law," they continued. "Even Minority Leader Senator McConnell has said, 'Shutting down the government isn't an effective way to make a point.' We couldn't agree more."
The Democrats' statement came in the wake of news that members of the House and Senate—with the reported backing of some Democrats in the upper chamber—are discussing the possible addition of immigration and border measures to a short-term government funding bill in a bid to win the votes of intransigent House Republicans.
Earlier this week, as the chaos-ridden House failed to make progress, the Senate advanced a legislative vehicle for a continuing resolution that would keep the government through November 17—an attempt to buy time for both chambers to approve full-year funding measures.
Citing two unnamed Republican aides, The Washington Postreported that "by Thursday evening, Senate Republicans were considering an amendment to the continuing resolution that would include $6 billion in funding for border security but no new immigration policy."
According to the Post, Sens. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), James Lankford (R-Okla.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), and Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.) "appeared to be involved in the talks."
On Friday, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.)—who is facing a potential removal plot by far-right House Republicans—is expected to put on the floor a Republican stopgap funding measure that includes major federal spending cuts and border policies.
The Wall Street Journalreported late Thursday that the GOP package includes changes that "House lawmakers passed earlier this year in a broader bill that orders construction to resume on the Trump administration's border wall." That bill was dead on arrival in the Senate.
"The border measures, which have broad backing in the conference, would also make it harder for people to remain in the U.S. under the protection of asylum rules," the Journal noted.
House Republicans' latest effort to move ahead with a short-term funding package will come after they passed several appropriations bills Thursday night, including measures to fund the Pentagon and State Department.
But the House voted down the GOP-authored agriculture appropriations bill, which included steep cuts to food aid for low-income families and a rollback of abortion pill access.
Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.), the top Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee, said in a statement that lawmakers "should have spent this week working together to prevent the government from shutting down."
"Instead, we spent it watching House Republicans in chaos, loading up their 2024 funding bills with deeper cuts and dangerous policies that harm the economy and raise the cost of living for American families," said DeLauro. "Another day of Republican dysfunction, two days until they shut the government down."
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"Let's build a green future where every student can learn and thrive," said Sen. Ed Markey while introducing the proposed legislation.
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Climate and education advocates on Thursday cheered the introduction in the U.S. Congress by Sen. Ed Markey and Rep. Jamaal Bowman of the Green New Deal for Public Schools Act, which the lawmakers said would invest $1.6 trillion to transform the nation's education system while "creating 1.3 million jobs and eliminating 78 million metric tons of carbon emissions over 10 years."
A statement promoting the proposed legislation says it would "fund green upgrades that remove all health harms and carbon pollution fromevery public school in the nation while taking on environmental and racial inequities."
"It will unleash the potential of safe and inspiring public education for 50 million K-12 students in every neighborhood across the country," the statement added. "And, it willadd essential staff to vulnerable schools, create 1.3 million good-paying jobs annually, and reduce carbon emissions by 78 millionmetric tons each year—that's the same as taking 17 million gas-powered cars off the road!"
The measure is currently co-sponsored by 74 House lawmakers and is endorsed by advocacy groups including the Sunrise Movement; American Federation of Teachers; Gen Z for Change; Working Families Party; Sierra Club; Institute for Policy Studies; GreenLatinos; March for Our Lives; Progressive Democrats of America; and the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees.
"The United States of America should have the best public education system in the world—our students, parents, teachers, staff, and administrators are doing their part, but Congress is failing them at every turn," Markey (D-Mass.) said in a statement. "School buildings are falling apart, educators and staff are creating makeshift air conditioners from window units, aging infrastructure is making our kids and our planet sick—it's a disgrace."
"The Green New Deal for Public Schools Act delivers climate justice, health justice, social justice, economic justice, and racial justice so that students—no matter their zip code—can learn in a safe and healthy environment, and one that is contributing to a healthier planet for the next generation," Markey added. "It is long past due for the United States to invest in schools what schools invest in us."
Bowman (D-N.Y.)—the founder and former principal of the Cornerstone Academy for Social Action, a public middle school in the Bronx—said that "it's time to revolutionize our public schools."
"As we face the devastating impacts of the climate crisis and confront the harms of underinvestment in redlined communities and inequities in our education system, we must center our kids and their futures," he asserted. "Education can change the world."
Bowman continued:
Schools should be the centers of our communities, places of joy and self-discovery where students feel safe to grow, thrive, and explore their passions and curiosity. Right now, they're crumbling, leaving our students, educators, and communities behind. We must take advantage of this moment by putting them first and facing the climate crisis head-on with bold investments in our schools focused on environmental, educational, economic, and racial equity.
"It's time for us to provide our kids with the resources they need to unlock their brilliance and have a livable planet by passing the Green New Deal for Public Schools Act and making urgent and necessary investments to revitalize our public education system," Bowman added.
The proposed legislation comes three days after students at more than 50 high schools across the U.S.—led by the Sunrise Movement—launched the Green New Deals for Schools campaign. The campaign is demanding that education officials provide school buildings powered by renewable energy; free, healthy, local, and sustainable meals; support for finding well-paying, unionized green careers; plans for extreme weather events; and instruction about the climate crisis.
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