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Activists and climate hawks in Congress are looking to President Biden and his administration to follow-through on commitments to reduce emissions and combat climate change following the news last week that West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin withdrew support for climate investments contained in a transformational legislative proposal.
Legislators in favor of addressing climate change did not mince words in expressing their disappointment in Sen. Manchin's "gaslighting" in this latest round of negotiations while simultaneously urging the administration to take the reins. Sen. Brian Schatz from Hawaii tweeted, "It is time for the executive branch to take action on climate," while Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island was more blunt, saying, "With legislative climate options now closed, it’s now time for executive Beast Mode." California Representative Jared Huffman said in reference to Sen. Manchin, "we're at a point where we have to stop empowering this puppet of the coal industry to be his own branch of government," and called on President Biden to take bold executive action.
While most experts agree the United States will ultimately need to pass a significant legislative package in order to meet the Biden administration's goal of cutting emissions in half by the end of the decade, there are still some key levers of executive authority that will make meaningful progress toward reaching the goal. The EPA, while hamstrung by the recent Supreme Court ruling limiting its authority to regulate coal and gas emissions is working on regulations to limit methane emissions, a highly potent greenhouse gas, as well as tailpipe emissions. "Every single agency and department across the administration has different actions they can take. West Virginia vs. EPA did not change that," said Christy Goldfuss, senior vice president for energy and environment policy at the Center for American Progress.
President Biden said in a statement, "Let me be clear: if the Senate will not move to tackle the climate crisis and strengthen our domestic clean energy industry, I will take strong executive action to meet this moment."
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If I’ve learned anything recently, it’s that humans are really reluctant to give things up to prevent a catastrophe They’re willing to hang on to the very end and risk a calamity."
