A panel of Arizona climate activists and a state lawmaker say recent climate extremes in the western half of the U.S. is why Congress needs to pass President Joe Biden’s $3.5 trillion spending package, although other Democrats remain skeptical.
Climate Action Campaign hosted state Sen. Jamescita Peshlakai, D-Window Rock, and others to push for the climate change agenda contained in Biden’s package of proposed spending.
“The indigenous tribes have memories of places here in Arizona, places that you could harvest and hunt and an abundance of resources. They are a sad memory for me, for many of us,” Peshlakai said during Tuesday’s event. “We have the opportunity to make bold, lasting changes for the future of all children, not only in small regions but the entire world.”
The activists pointed to a climate report released Aug. 9 by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) that said climate change is accelerating.
“Many of the changes observed in the climate are unprecedented in thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of years, and some of the changes already set in motion – such as continued sea-level rise – are irreversible over hundreds to thousands of years,” IPCC said in a release.
The panelists warned of irreversible damage if steps aren’t taken to curb climate change.
“If we don’t do something, the generation of young students I teach at the University of Arizona, children and grandchildren of Arizonans, will live through these huge changes and suffer the effects,” said Dr. Gregg Garfin, a University of Arizona climatologist.
Biden’s proposed “Build Back Better” package of $3.5 trillion worth of social spending has drawn comparisons to Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s New Deal in terms of scope. In terms of climate change, it would provide tax cuts for green energy initiatives, create a new Civilian Climate Corps and spend more on “thousands of local projects.”
Democrats, who maintain narrow majorities in both chambers of Congress, are struggling to convince the more moderate members of their caucuses to approve that level of spending.
Ten moderate Democrats are accusing their leadership of withholding passage of a $1.4 trillion infrastructure spending plan in exchange for their support for Biden’s plan.
“In any event, if Democratic leaders believe they need to hold a good bipartisan bill hostage – and strong-arm their fellow Democrats – in order to achieve their desired policy goal, perhaps they should reconsider whether their overall approach is the right one,” U.S. Rep. Stephanie Murphy, D-Florida, wrote in an op-ed.
By Cole Lauterbach | The Center Square
