On Wednesday, President Joe Biden will inform Congressmen and women that he would take action to tackle climate change if they don’t.
The final straw will occur when the president travels to Massachusetts and stops the Brayton Point Power Station, the biggest coal facility in New England that is being converted into a factory making cables for offshore wind farms.
Tomorrow, the president will make it plain that climate change poses an existential threat to both our country and the whole planet. Additionally, he will make it plain that because Congress won’t take action on this emergency, he will, according to a White House official.
‘In the coming days, he will continue to announce executive actions that we have developed to combat this emergency,’ the official noted.
Biden’s threat comes after Democratic Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia torpedoed the president’s green agenda on Capitol Hill when he said he could not support billions of dollars in new climate spending as part of a larger economic package.
Since Manchin, who represents a state with a significant coal sector, made his plans known, Biden has pledged to exercise his executive authority.
Despite intense pressure from members of his party, the president will decide against proclamating a national emergency on Wednesday, which would free up public funds to address the problem.
Speaking at the daily press conference on Tuesday, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre stated, “The climate emergency is not going to materialize tomorrow, but we still have it on the table.” I haven’t circled a date on the calendar, you say.
But in his speech, the president will reveal government funding to aid areas devastated by the heat. Additionally, he will reveal fresh plans to advance the domestic offshore wind sector.
Following the breakdown of negotiations between Manchin and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Vice President Joe Biden announced last week that he will begin to take executive action on climate concerns.
Manchin stated that he would only support a fiscal package that increased subsidies to assist people get health insurance under the Obamacare statute and that allowed Medicare to bargain for cheaper prescription medication prices. He cited worries about historically high inflation as justification.
Biden then vowed to act.
‘I´m going to use every power I have as president to continue to fulfill my pledge to move toward dealing with global warming,’ Biden told reporters over the weekend in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, after Manchin scuttled negotiations in the Senate.
However, Democratic legislators and environmental organizations have urged Biden to be more assertive, calling for the president to declare a national emergency so that government funds may be redirected to support renewable energy initiatives that would facilitate the switch from fossil fuels.
After Congress failed to provide the funds, President Donald Trump declared a national emergency to redirect billions of dollars to start building a wall on the southern border. Democrats, however, objected to his action, and it was contested in court. Soon after Trump took office, Biden retracted his declaration.
Jean-Pierre declined to give details on internal White House deliberations on using a national emergency declaration.
‘We are still considering it. I don’t have the upsides or the downsides of it,’ she said.
Manchin’s support is required to progress healthcare reform, another administration priority, so the White House is being cautious to avoid alienating him.
The U.S. shift from fossil fuels to renewable energy is embodied by the Brayton Point Power Station, where Biden will speak.
Prior to its closure in 2017, it served as New England’s biggest coal-fired power plant. It will now operate as a manufacturing centre for equipment essential for offshore wind farms envisioned along the East Coast, including underwater power lines.