Senator Doug Jones (D-AL) has signed onto a bill supported by far-left environmentalist groups that would force President Donald Trump’s administration to adhere to the Paris Agreement, which was reached in 2016 through the United Nations to combat greenhouse gas emissions.
Trump announced in June 2017 that the United States would exit from this global climate deal, citing losses in American energy production and independence, as well as significant job losses, as some of the economic disadvantages of the Paris Agreement.
Since then, the president has often celebrated his decision to leave the agreement as a boost to the nation’s economy, especially manufacturing and energy sector jobs.
However, as reported by Oregon’s KTVZ Channel 21 News, Sens. Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Jeff Merkley (D-OR) have now introduced legislation directing the Trump administration to fall in line with the Paris Agreement.
The legislation – the International Climate Accountability Act – would reportedly prevent Trump from using funds to withdraw from the Paris climate deal. Jones joined most Democratic senators in signing up as cosponsors on the bill.
House Democrats, led by Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), last month passed their version of the legislation, entitled the “Climate Action Now Act.”
The International Climate Accountability Act has been officially endorsed by the BlueGreen Alliance, Earthjustice, Environment America, Environmental Defense Fund, Sierra Club, Union of Concerned Sciences, Green The Church, GreenLatinos and additional special interest groups listed here in a letter of support.
“No matter how much Trump tries to bury his head in the sand, climate change is real and it’s here. Withdrawing from the Paris Climate Agreement will only set back America’s environmental leadership and quicken the destruction of our planet,” Wyden said, according to KTVZ. “If Donald Trump continues to deny science, Congress must force his hand.”
“We can’t stop President Trump from holding bizarre, anti-science climate denial beliefs, but we can work to make sure those beliefs don’t damage Americans’ health and livelihoods,” Merkley added. “Climate chaos is a global crisis, and we need every nation on the front lines of this battle. America can and should lead the world to meet this challenge.”
Wyden and Merkley were the two senators who joined Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) in introducing the Green New Deal.
Jones was undecided on how he would vote on the Green New Deal just hours before a procedural vote occurred on the legislation in the Senate earlier this year. That floor vote has become synonymous with Jones, as he memorably looked to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) right before voting.
Alabama’s junior senator has vowed to back whomever the Democrats nominate against Trump in 2020, no matter how radical that individual is, including on climate activism like the Green New Deal.
It is estimated that up to 271,000 Alabama manufacturing jobs could be wiped out by this proposal. Tens of thousands of agricultural jobs would also be on the chopping block, along with high-paying jobs in the aerospace, defense and automotive sectors.
Additionally, it should be noted that Jones has endorsed former Vice President Joe Biden in the Democratic presidential primary. Biden has come out with his own climate plan that has been called a “radical Green New Deal knockoff.”
The United States cannot officially withdraw from the Paris Agreement until next year, raising the stakes of the 2020 election cycle even more.
Sean Ross is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @sean_yhn
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