Given the current conversation surrounding climate change here in Washington D.C., it’s pretty hard to believe that Earth Day actually began as a bipartisan environmental movement.
Prior to Earth Day’s origin, the general public was just becoming conscious of our excessive consumption of gas, the ever-present clouds of smog, and irresponsible waste disposal of hazardous materials — and the inextricable link between these pollutants and public health.
That’s why Democratic Senator Gaylord Nelson and Republican Congressman Pete McCloskey joined forces to establish the first-ever Earth Day celebration in 1970 to protest against the impacts of our industrial footprint on the planet. In the years following, this day of action has mobilized 1 billion people across the globe spanning over 190 countries.
Big oil and gas companies immediately understood that this environmental movement directly opposed their mission to rake in as many profits as possible — and rather than change their ways, they simply funded politicians who would vote against clean energy and climate saving policies.
Enter Washington’s biggest fossil fool, a.k.a. Big Oil’s golden child of 2023: Kevin McCarthy
This year, Kevin McCarthy has led the charge to roll back key policies of President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, which includes historic investments in the clean energy sector. He’s tried (and failed) to overturn Biden’s Clean Water Rule. And he’s making a tidy sum from Big Oil and Gas by continuing to vote in stark opposition to our critical environmental regulations.
In the decades following our first Earth Day, we’ve seen thousands of studies highlighting how unsustainable our dependence on oil and gas is — not just for our climate, but for our public health and safety.
That’s why we need climate champions like our SEEC Members in Washington to fight back against anti-environment voices like McCarthy’s and pass planet-saving policies that will ensure our future is healthier and more sustainable for generations to come.
Thanks to your help in 2022, SEEC PAC was able to re-elect over 95% of our pro-environment members to the U.S. House of Representatives — defying the odds on a night where Democrats lost seats. Now we are counting on you to help our SEEC members pass climate, clean energy and environmental justice policies in the 118th Congress while we continue fighting for a sustainable future. But if you'd like to receive fewer emails, we understand. You can click here to only get our most important messages, or you can unsubscribe.
The Sustainable Energy and Environment Coalition Political Action Committee (SEEC PAC) is an organization that supports members in the U.S. House of Representatives and candidates who fight for clean energy, climate change solutions, environmental justice, and protection of our nation’s clean air, water, wildlife, and public lands. Will you make a donation to our fight today?
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