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Harris charts careful path on climate

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Careful Path

Vice President Kamala Harris has mentioned climate change only in passing since becoming the 2024 Democratic presidential nominee. She has offered no specifics on how she would curb dangerous levels of warming. Climate leaders say they are fine with that.

“I am not concerned,” said Jay Inslee, the Democratic governor of Washington. He believes it is more important for Ms. Harris to draw a distinction between her and her Republican rival, former President Donald J.

Trump, than to drill down on policy details. As Ms.

Harris prepares to address the nation at the Democratic National Convention, she faces the challenge of energizing party loyalists while also reaching out to disaffected Republicans and moderate voters.

So far Ms.

Harris and her running mate Tim Walz, the governor of Minnesota, have embraced a pragmatic agenda, calling for things like a minimum-wage increase and child-care funding. While President Biden has made climate change a signature issue, signing into law the largest clean energy investments in American history, Ms.

Harris has yet to detail for voters her climate or clean-energy positions. Some analysts said new promises to slash greenhouse gas emissions or rein in fossil fuels could alienate voters, particularly in the energy-rich swing state of Pennsylvania. Environmental advocates are now considering new possibilities based on Harris’s past actions as vice president and attorney general of California.

Harris on climate and economy

They point to her history of taking on oil companies, her focus on environmental justice, and the historic nature of her candidacy as a woman of color. As California’s top law enforcement official, Harris sued oil companies over leaky underground gasoline storage tanks that threatened groundwater.

She also joined a criminal case against a pipeline company over a 2015 oil spill in the Pacific Ocean. In her final weeks as attorney general, Harris filed suit to block an Obama administration plan to allow fracking in the Pacific. Many climate activists believe that the executive branch under Harris would do more to hold fossil fuel companies accountable than previous administrations.

When Harris ran for president in 2020, she voiced support for legal action against oil companies over climate change, comparing it to the 1990s litigation against tobacco companies. The Harris campaign hasn’t extended its economic populist message to its climate politics. The Democratic platform for 2024 takes a contradictory approach, promoting renewables as the future while bragging about high oil and gas production under Biden.

There’s an alternative populist climate message Harris could embrace: pointing out the everyday costs of the climate crisis and fossil fuel dependence. Homeowners in Florida are paying five times the national average for insurance due to climate risks. Californians and Oklahomans are struggling to afford housing as insurers pass costs onto customers.

Ratepayers are spending more on electric bills due to increased air conditioning during heat waves. Investments in housing, mass transit, and electric vehicles can reduce U.S. dependence on cars and gas, insulating consumers from volatile prices. Harris can advocate for genuine energy independence, free from the volatility of fossil fuels and an energy system controlled by a handful of billionaires.

The costs of climate change are already piling up on monthly bills, and many corporations are plotting to keep profiting from it.

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About Our Journalist

Johannah Lopez

Johannah Lopez is a versatile professional who seamlessly navigates two worlds. By day, she excels as a SaaS freelance writer, crafting informative and persuasive content for tech companies. By night, she showcases her vibrant personality and customer service skills as a part-time bartender. Johannah's ability to blend her writing expertise with her social finesse makes her a well-rounded and engaging storyteller in any setting.
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