As the election comes to a close, Collin Rees, Campaign Manager at Oil Change U.S, released the following statement:
“Our country is at a crossroads. One path leads to an opportunity for a livable planet and the other to accelerated climate chaos and a breakdown of our democracy.
“Another Trump term would spell disaster, especially for Black, Brown, and Indigenous communities, working-class people, and our climate. The climate crisis is here and already harming millions of Americans each year, as the devastation of Hurricanes Helene and Milton make clear.
“Trump has promised to sell out our future for campaign donations from Big Oil. He intends to torpedo the fragile progress made on the climate crisis so far by withdrawing from the Paris Agreement and shredding environmental safeguards.
“Kamala Harris’s election, on the other hand, would leave open the possibility of a more just and sustainable future. If she wins office, the broad coalition of people concerned about the climate crisis – from Gulf Coast fishermen to Los Angeles public school teachers to Gen Z and many more – will continue to pressure her to stand firm against the fossil fuel industry and prioritize clean air, clean water, and a liveable climate for all of us.
“Harris will have immediate opportunities to move the country towards a clean energy future, including shutting down the disastrous Dakota Access Pipeline and the proposed Gulf Link crude oil export terminal and making the Biden administration’s pause on new LNG exports permanent.
“This election also represents a crucial moment for US foreign policy and our role on the global stage, as the ongoing genocide in Palestine continues to deny human rights and defy international law. This has been a defining issue for voters this election cycle and Harris has vowed to do everything she can to end the war in Gaza, but real action means supporting an immediate arms embargo and ceasefire.
“Harris can become the climate president and global leader we desperately need by taking urgent, uncompromising action. She must end fossil fuel expansion, invest in clean energy, and safeguard Black, Brown, and Indigenous communities from the fossil fuel industry’s pollution and the worst impacts of the climate crisis.”
Oil Change U.S. responds to Vice Presidential debate
In response to tonight’s vice presidential debate, Collin Rees, Campaign Manager at Oil Change U.S., released the following statement:
“Tim Walz and JD Vance debated while communities across the South reel from the devastating impacts of Hurricane Helene, one of the deadliest and costliest storms in U.S. history. Over 160 are dead, hundreds are missing, and millions remain in dire need of food, water, and power — yet Vance brazenly dismissed established climate science, while Walz touted a deadly ‘all-of-the-above’ energy policy incompatible with the urgent climate action we know is necessary.
“Disasters like Helene are driven and turbo-charged by fossil fuels. We can’t solar-panel our way out of this crisis while continuing to drill and frack. Today’s catastrophes demand bold, uncompromising leadership. Tim Walz and Kamala Harris must step up to halt fossil fuel expansion, champion clean energy, and advance a just phaseout of oil, gas, and coal to protect our communities from escalating climate impacts.
“Tonight’s debate took place in the context of escalating regional war in the Middle East. Both candidates bragged about their support of Israel and its brutal wars against the Palestinian and Lebanese people. This must end. The last thing the American people need is for billions in public money to be spent bombing residential neighborhoods, killing civilians, and displacing millions. Hurricane Helene shows us even more clearly that our leaders must invest instead in preventing climate disasters and rebuilding communities when they strike.”
In response to tonight’s presidential debate, Allie Rosenbluth, Campaign Manager at Oil Change U.S., released the following statement:
“Tonight, both candidates bragged about their support for fracking and record fossil fuel production — dangerous positions that will keep us on the path towards catastrophic climate impacts and continue exposing frontline communities to deadly levels of fossil fuel pollution. The science is clear that the only way to limit warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius is to phase out fossil fuels.
“We expect this from Donald Trump, a walking oil spill who openly promised fossil fuel CEOs he would shred all environmental protections in exchange for $1 billion in campaign donations. If elected, Trump would sell our future to fossil fuel barons, threaten our democracy, demonize immigrants and LGTBQ+ people, and further erode reproductive rights.
“Kamala Harris promised to turn the page and chart a better future. That means taking decisive action to end fossil fuels and ensuring a just transition to renewable energy. We need a climate president — one who will invest in clean energy, end fossil fuel subsidies, and phase out fossil fuels to protect the communities most exposed to oil and gas pollution and the climate crisis. It’s time for Harris to show she can be that president.”
Oil Change U.S. Responds to Additional Biden Selections on Climate, Energy
Multiple news outlets have now confirmed the selection of U.S. Rep. Deb Haaland (D-NM) as President-Elect Joe Biden’s Secretary of the Interior. This follows other key energy and climate selections by Biden’s Transition Team throughout the week.
In response to these announcements, Collin Rees, Senior Campaigner at Oil Change U.S., released the following statement:
“Rep. Deb Haaland’s selection as Secretary of the Interior is a victory for Indigenous communities who have been resisting the colonization and exploitation of their land and lives for hundreds of years. It’s also a win for Indigenous leaders and progressives who’ve been relentlessly pushing Joe Biden to follow through on his campaign promises and build an adminstration that will confront the climate crisis and prioritize environmental justice.
“Rep. Haaland has a long record of standing up to fossil fuel giveaways and opposing disastrous projects like the Dakota Access oil pipeline. We look forward to a champion for climate justice leading a key department to kickstart an end to the expansion of the fossil fuel industry and implement a just transition for workers and communities.
“This nomination continues Biden’s rejection of top candidates with fossil fuel ties, and follows the selection of bold leaders like Gina McCarthy, Brenda Mallory, and Jennifer Granholm to head other parts of his energy and climate teams.
“Taken together, it’s clear Biden is listening and responding to public pressure to go bold on climate, environmental justice, and racial equity. This week’s launch of the nationwide Build Back Fossil Free campaign will continue to build that pressure and uplift frontline resistance to deadly fossil fuel projects and environmental injustice.”
– Today, dozens of leading progressive groups launched the Build Back Fossil Free campaign to pressure Biden and his appointees to take bold action to confront the fossil fuel industry and fulfill his promises on climate change, environmental justice, and racial equity: https://buildbackfossilfree.org
– In November, advocates launched a dedicated website opposed to Ernest Moniz and other fossil fuel representatives serving in a Biden administration: https://nomoniz.org
Oil Change U.S. Responds to Biden Selections on Energy and Climate
Multiple news outlets have now confirmed the selection of former Michigan Governor Jennifer Graholm as President-Elect Joe Biden’s Secretary of Energy and former EPA Administrator as Biden’s domestic “climate czar.”
In response to these announcements, Collin Rees, Senior Campaigner at Oil Change U.S., released the following statement:
“These selections are a major victory for the broad and diverse movement pushing Joe Biden to keep top contenders with dangerous fossil fuel ties out of his Cabinet and administration.
“Gina McCarthy is a proven climate advocate with the experience to hit the ground running and coordinate an all-of-government response to the climate crisis. She’s been a strong champion for fossil fuel divestment in recent years, and made clear that the fossil fuel era is coming to a close. And she has increasingly recognized the critical importance of environmental justice in climate policy, which should serve her well in this role in the Biden administration.
“Jennifer Granholm is an experienced leader with a strong record of support for renewable energy and opposition to the disastrous Keystone XL and Dakota Access oil pipelines. She understands the urgency of the climate crisis and the need to confront the fossil fuel industry, previously stating, ‘We ought to be doing everything we possibly can to keep fossil fuel energy in the ground and develop renewables.’
“Joe Biden’s entire government must be dedicated to mobilizing for an end to the fossil fuel era, and these announcements are a step in the right direction. We look forward to working with McCarthy and Granholm to combat the climate crisis and emphasize environmental justice in everything Biden’s administration does.”
– In November, advocates launched a dedicated website opposed to Ernest Moniz and other fossil fuel representatives serving in a Biden administration: https://nomoniz.org
– In June 2019, Joe Biden has signed the No Fossil Fuel Money pledge to reject contributions from the PACs, lobbyists, and executives of oil, gas, and coal companies: http://twitter.com/JoeBiden/status/1144357988523659264
Over 40 groups send letter: Hochberg’s fossil fuel record makes him unfit to be a top aide for Biden
WASHINGTON, DC — Over 40 environmental groups sent a letter today to the Biden Transition Team decrying Fred Hochberg’s potential leadership as a top aide in the Biden Administration. The signatories to the letter include Friends of the Earth US, Oil Change U.S., Greenpeace USA, the Rainforest Action Network, and the Center for Biological Diversity.
Hochberg served as the President and Chairman of the US Export-Import Bank (EXIM), the official U.S. export credit agency. Hochberg’s fossil fueled legacy at EXIM disqualifies him for a top aide position with the new Biden administration, the groups claim.
“Hochberg was a disaster at EXIM, turning the institution into the fossil fuel bank,” said Doug Norlen, economic policy director at Friends of the Earth U.S. “Under Hochberg’s leadership, EXIM supported projects like the Sasan coal plant and mine that have resulted in at least 36 deaths. This cruel legacy means Hochberg has forfeited his right to a place in the Biden administration.”
Hochberg was shortlisted in early November as a potential candidate for U.S. Trade Representative, as well as other high-level positions in the Biden administration.
“The legacy of Fred Hochberg’s Export-Import Bank is filled with climate destruction and egregious human rights violations,” said Collin Rees, senior campaigner at Oil Change U.S. “Joe Biden must move forward and implement a swift end to U.S. fossil fuel finance — and that means Fred Hochberg shouldn’t be allowed anywhere near power in the next administration.”
“Given his record of support for fossil fuel expansion world-wide, and for deadly, polluting, and corruption-inducing projects, we urge you to reject Fred Hochberg for U.S. Trade Representative and other key administration positions,” the letter reads.
Fred Hochberg’s consideration for a top position is in direct violation of Biden’s pledge to jumpstart a Presidency focused on climate solutions. In his seven years at EXIM under Obama, Hochberg oversaw USD 34 billion in investments in fossil fuel projects, which is three times as much as EXIM spent on fossil fuels the previous eight years under George W. Bush.
Contact:
David Turnbull, david [at] priceofoil.org
Oil Change U.S. Response to Biden Presidential Election Victory
Multiple news outlets have now confirmed the results of enough states to give Joe Biden the necessary 270 electoral votes to win the presidential election. In response, Oil Change U.S. experts released the following statements:
Elizabeth Bast, Executive Director:
“The victory of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris over Donald Trump is an important victory for democracy against fascism. It’s a win for the climate and for trusting science, and it’s a win for all who fought to stand up to Trump and his blatant racism and misogyny. But the work is nowhere near over. These next four years may be the most critical years we’ve ever seen — for the climate, for restoring our democracy, and for pushing back against growing white supremacy and moving towards real racial justice.
“Joe Biden said he will transition the U.S. away from oil, and we’re here for it. The American public is desperate for real climate action, and we look forward to working with the Biden and Harris administration to live up to all they’ve promised. This includes taking critical first steps in winding down an out of control fossil fuel industry in the United States: stopping the Keystone XL pipeline yet again, ending fossil fuel leases on public lands, ending fossil fuel subsidies and finance, implementing strong environmental justice standards and respecting Indigenous sovereignty, and recommitting to international climate leadership through re-engaging with the Paris Agreement and leading the G20 in a transition away from fossil fuels.
“There is much work to do, but we welcome this opportunity to advance our collective efforts for climate justice and a managed decline of fossil fuels.”
Rebecca Concepcion Apostol, National Program Director:
“While the Biden climate plan is perhaps the most ambitious of any incoming President, we know it’s still not enough to protect our climate and communities from the mounting disasters we are facing all over the country. After a round of well-deserved celebrations, we’ll get back to work pushing with the urgency our climate crisis requires. A critical first step in the days ahead is ensuring Biden appoints true climate champions to all key positions and keeps fossil fuel representatives and lobbyists out of the incoming administration.
“We need to see a new Biden administration move aggressively to phase out fossil fuel production in the United States with a people-centered just transition for workers and communities, including enacting ambitious executive orders to get the ball rolling immediately upon taking office, and working to instate climate action that matches the needs of the people.”
Alex Doukas, Stop Funding Fossils Program Director:
“Joe Biden has repeatedly committed to ending the billions in subsidies that go to the fossil fuel industry each year, and we look forward to holding him to this commitment. Biden has spoken frequently about moving the United States into a leadership position on climate, and one way he can back that rhetoric up is to end U.S. public support for fossil fuel production abroad. This would mean ending dirty finance overseas via the Export Import Bank, Development Finance Corporation, and U.S. participation in multilateral development banks, while delivering on Biden’s campaign promise to get a G20 commitment on ending export finance for high-carbon projects, including all fossil fuel infrastructure.”
Collin Rees, Senior Campaigner:
“This election has played out in a time of extreme turmoil — it’s happened amidst a deadly pandemic, an unprecedented uprising against racial injustice, and a climate crisis seizing headlines like never before. People-powered movements have changed the public conversation, and climate is now a top concern for voters.
“Progressives across the country in swing districts and swing states proved that by leaning into bold, winning messages like standing up to Big Oil’s dirty dollars, providing health care for all, and defunding the racist police state, Democrats can win big. But the conversation in DC is stuck in the past, and we’ll need to push harder than ever to stop false solutions and win the transformative climate agenda we need. Joe Biden must lay out a bold agenda on climate from Day One, and we’ll be here to hold him to it.”
Contact:
Rebecca Concepcion Apostol, rebecca [at] priceofoil.org
David Turnbull, david [at] priceofoil.org
Collin Rees, collin [at] priceofoil.org
Oil Change U.S. endorses Joe Biden and Kamala Harris for President and Vice President
Today, Oil Change U.S. is announcing its endorsement of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris for President and Vice President of the United States. Elizabeth Bast, Executive Director of Oil Change U.S., provided the following statement:
“Last week’s debate was just the latest reflection of how desperately our country needs a change in leadership, and tonight’s vice-presidential debate should show more of the same. The path towards greater climate and racial justice is clear: it’s the one with Joe Biden and Kamala Harris in the White House. That’s why Oil Change U.S. is endorsing Joe Biden and Kamala Harris for President and Vice President of the United States.
“While Biden showed at the first debate that he’s ready to listen and lead on climate, Donald Trump once again showed how a second term of his administration would be disastrous for everyone. His deadly politics of racism, fear, white supremacy, and climate denial was on full display at the debate. Trump further demonstrated his blatant disregard for others with his handling of the COVID-19 outbreak within the White House. No one — not a single one of us — can afford a second term of Donald Trump.
“Since the start of this campaign, Joe Biden has been on a journey of listening, adjusting, and improvement. He’s shown that he’s willing to hear critique and adjust course. His running mate Kamala Harris has centered justice in her understanding of the climate crisis and has proposed new ideas on phasing out fossil fuel production. Donald Trump is trying desperately to claim that Biden has ‘lost the left’ in order to depress voter turnout; in reality, Joe Biden and Kamala Harris are broadening their coalition every day in response to Trump’s campaign of hate and fear.
“Oil Change U.S. was not shy to critique Joe Biden throughout the primary campaign. We pointed out where his plans fell short, and when he took advice from the wrong advisors. But we also know he’s listening — both Biden and Harris are signatories of the No Fossil Fuel Money pledge, and even in the last week they’ve announced fossil fuel executives will have no place in their transition team. With Joe Biden and Kamala Harris in the White House, we know there will be room to shape a more just and equitable future.”
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Oil Change U.S. is dedicated to supporting real climate leadership, exposing the true costs of fossil fuels, and building a just, equitable, and renewable energy future in the United States. Read more at http://oilchangeus.org.
Initial Signatories: Center for Biological Diversity, Climate Justice Alliance, Democracy Collaborative, Dēmos, GreenFaith, Greenpeace USA, Hip Hop Caucus, Indigenous Environmental Network, Institute for Policy Studies Climate Policy Program, Maine People’s Alliance, Michigan Environmental Justice Coalition, MoveOn, National LGBTQ Task Force, New Economy Coalition, New Florida Majority, Oil Change U.S., People’s Action, Sunrise Movement, Working Families Party, 350.org
As communities across the country, as well as countless people all over the world, face accelerating impacts and risks of climate change, federal, state, and local leadership in the United States is critically important for advancing immediate and aggressive climate action in public policy.
The science shows we no longer have the luxury to act incrementally. We must rapidly transform every sector of society if we are to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. But urgent action on climate change cannot come at a price of expedience and further sacrifice for frontline communities. Frontline communities are primarily communities of color, indigenous communities, and struggling working-class communities most impacted by fossil fuel pollution and climate change—which are all the more vulnerable due to historic and continuing racism, segregation, and socioeconomic inequity.
In tackling the urgency of the climate crisis, prioritizing the most impacted communities for the protections and benefits of an economy-wide renewable energy transition is a moral imperative. This is, in large part, the meaning of a “just transition.” The economic transition we need to reverse the climate crisis must not leave behind impacted communities and workers. Racial and economic equity must be at the core of all climate solutions.
The executive branch can set the stage for a transformative climate justice agenda by taking immediate action at this intersection of climate, racial justice, and economic transformation. The Frontlines Climate Justice Executive Action Platform speaks to this opportunity by identifying regulatory rulemakings and other executive actions to advance an equitable climate agenda from day one. While major legislation in many areas will ultimately be needed to advance a bold federal agenda of climate action, this platform proposes a set of actions the executive branch can take without new legislation, major new appropriations, or other Congressional authority. However, many of the proposed executive actions can be harmonized with, be complementary to, or set a direction for statutory advancement of transformative climate action when that becomes possible.
This platform identifies actions in 4 basic categories that speak to the policy work and movement-building that frontline leaders in the climate movement have developed over many years, as they have forged a clear vision of equitable and resilient social and economic transformation:
Environmental Justice: Protecting frontline communities from continuing harms of fossil fuel, industrial, and built environment pollution.
Just Recovery: Ensuring just and equitable recovery from, and resiliency against, climate disasters.
Climate Equity Accountability: Elevating equity and stakeholder decision-making in federal climate rules and programmatic investments.
Energy Democracy: Remaking the monopoly fossil fuel energy system as a clean, renewably-sourced, and democratically-controlled commons.
In each of these areas, the platform presents a policy outline of possible rulemakings, executive orders, or other presidential actions that, taken together, aim to put frontline needs and priorities at the center of climate policy, including empowering grassroots stakeholders to be decision-makers in the process.
This platform builds on the hard-fought history of environmental justice advocacy that escalated in the 1980s, launched a principled national movement in 1991, and was formally recognized in federal policy in 1994 with President Clinton’s historic Executive Order 12898. Executive Order 12898 requires federal agencies to develop strategies for “achieving environmental justice,” but even by its own limited mandate, it has not been enforced, and frontline communities now face climate change impacts that only compound ongoing racial disparities in pollution exposure and fossil fuel harms.
Taken together, the actions recommended in this platform address continuing disparities, establish greater accountability for a just transition, and lay groundwork for systemic changes needed to end fossil fuel dependency and build a just and equitable renewable energy future. In these key respects, it is inspired by the principled vision put forward by the Equitable and Just National Climate Platform, and aligned with the Climate Justice Alliance’s Just Transition: A Framework for Change. It also respectfully acknowledges the place of Native leadership in a just transition, as formulated in the Indigenous Principles of a Just Transition. This platform also complements proposed executive actions in the Climate President Action Plan, including supply-side restrictions to limit fossil fuel extraction, economy-wide greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation standards, and Department of Justice intervention to protect non-violent climate change activists from criminalization by states and localities, to pursue significant cases against environmental racism under civil rights laws, and to investigate and pursue, or otherwise support, civil and criminal lawsuits against fossil fuel companies. All of that and much more is needed, but the focus of this platform is specifically on the needs and priorities of frontline communities in the face of climate crisis.
In the broader landscape, the emerging paradigm of a Green New Deal captures the scale and urgency of the climate crisis. However, a primary — and science-driven — focus on aggressive GHG reductions is not inherently equitable for communities facing disproportionate local pollution, largely from the same facilities and sources driving the climate crisis. There are many reasons for this, including that the most polluted communities will tend to be “last in line” for GHG reductions, because these reductions are likely to be the most costly. Longstanding and worsening political power imbalances also often determine who will be protected by, and who will benefit from, any public policy, including climate policy and related investments.
The promise of climate policy for frontline communities lies in targeted policy design that prioritizes protections, direct emissions reductions, job creation and other economic benefits, and resiliency gains for the most impacted communities, including greater control of decision-making — all of which animates the executive action platform that follows. It also lies in addressing deeply interconnected crises of housing affordability, gentrifying economic development, and financial extraction of labor, community, and natural resources. Those challenges cannot be solved by the executive branch on its own and will require extensive state and local action, major federal legislation in some cases, and massive public investment through appropriations, bonding, and other means.
In contrast with the promise, the peril of climate policy lies in deferment of and underinvestment in equitable and transformative solutions, and elevation of false solutions that put markets, unproven technology, and, ultimately, private investors, in charge of the transition — not the most impacted communities and the most equitable solutions.
Together, this understanding of the promise and the peril of climate policy is the vision of frontline leaders working in the hardest-hit communities and regions, developed over many decades. This vision has been building from local action to regional and national networks and strategies, which have accelerated in the last several years. Many organizations representing frontline communities have led in this process. The Gulf South for a Green New Deal Policy Platform is one powerful example of a locally-driven and regional vision of climate justice for the most impacted communities.
Ultimately, winning a frontline climate action agenda starts with the vision of frontline leaders. Moving forward requires elevation of that leadership, grassroots power-building, and commitments of national allies and public officials to support the frontline vision and its policy components as a clear priority in the federal landscape in 2021 and beyond.
In the first 100 days of a new term, the executive branch could bring dramatic developments in federal climate policy. This executive action platform will help to ensure that, however bold in tackling climate change, federal climate policy is centered on advancing racial justice and ensuring a just and equitable economic transformation for the most impacted communities.
Additional Signatories: Alianza for Progress, American Jewish World Service (AJWS), Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE), ATMOS Financial, Better Future Project, Binghamton Regional Sustainability Coalition, California Environmental Justice Alliance, Call to Action Colorado, Campaign for America’s Future, Catalyst Miami, Catholic Divestment Network, CatholicNetwork.US, Center for Economic Democracy, Center for Emergent Diplomacy, Center for International Environmental Law, Center for Story-based Strategy, Clean Energy Action, Climable.org, Climate Crisis Policy, Climate Finance Action, Climate Hawks Vote, Co-op Power, CODEPINK, Community Power, Cooperative Energy Futures, Data for Progress, Dayenu, Democrats of the Desert, Detroit Green Skills Alliance, Earth Care, Earth Day Initiative, Earth Ethics, East Michigan Environmental Action Council (EMEAC), Education, Economics, Environmental, Climate and Health Organization (EEECHO), Extinction Rebellion, Extinction Rebellion Coachella Valley, Fair World Project, Faithful America, Friends of the Earth U.S., Fund for Democratic Communities, Grassroots Global Justice Alliance, Green America, Green Education and Legal Fund GRID Alternatives, Gulf Coast Center for Law & Policy, in.site collaborative, Indivisible East Manatee, Interfaith Power & Light, International Association of World Peace Advocates, International Student Environmental Coalition, Just Community Energy Transition Project, KrowdX Inc., Les Jeunes Ambassadeurs de l’Environnement pour le Développement Durable, Local Clean Energy Alliance, Long Beach Alliance for Clean Energy, Manatee Clean Energy Alliance, Miami Climate Alliance, Mothers Out Front, Nature Conservation Advocates for Climate initiative (NCACI), NC Climate Justice Collective, No Kill Magazine, North Carolina Council of Churches, North Carolina Interfaith Power & Light, NYC Grassroots Alliance, Organizers in the Land of Enchantment (OLÉ), Our Climate, Partners for Dignity & Rights, Partnership for Policy Integrity, Partnership for Working Families, Peace Development Fund, People Power Solar Cooperative, Peoples Climate Movement — NY, PeoplesHub, Physicians for Social Responsibility Pennsylvania, Post Growth Institute, Power Shift Network, Progressive Sarasota (Florida), PUSH Buffalo, Race Forward, Rachel Carson Council, Rainforest Action Network, Rapid Shift, Renewable Energy Long Island, Resource Generation, Santa Cruz Climate Action Network, Sarasota Climate Change Meetup, Solstice Initiative, Inc., Southern Oregon Climate Action Now, Suncoast Climate Justice Coalition, Sustainable Economies Law Center, SustainUS, The CLEO Institute, The Climate Mobilization, The Climate Museum, The Leap, The River Project, The Solutions Project, TimeBanks USA, Unitarian Universalist Ministry for Earth, Unitarian Universalist Service Committee, UPROSE, US Partnership for Education for Sustainable Development, WildEarth Guardians, Women’s Earth and Climate Action Network (WECAN), Young Entertainment Activists, Youth United for Climate Crisis Action (YUCCA), 198 methods, 350 Butte County, 350 New Hampshire, 350 New Orleans, 350 Seattle, 350 Triangle
No Fossil Fuel Money Coalition Members Respond to Joe Biden Fundraiser Flap
Tonight at CNN’s Climate Town Hall, Joe Biden was asked a question regarding an upcoming fundraiser in support of the Biden campaign being hosted by Andrew Goldman, a long-term LNG investor and cofounder of Western LNG.
The No Fossil Fuel Money pledge — which Biden and all other major Democratic presidential candidates have signed — says that candidates should not take contributions over $200 from executives of the fossil fuel industry. ‘Executives’ are defined in the pledge as named executive officers in SEC filings, to provide a clear demarcation for campaigns to apply in screens and to ensure the pledge targets top executives and not the majority of fossil fuel workers.
In response, No Fossil Fuel Money coalition members released the following statements.
David Turnbull, Strategic Communications Director of Oil Change U.S., said:
“It’s true that Andrew Goldman is not an SEC-named executive officer for Western LNG, so any contributions would not technically violate Vice President Biden’s No Fossil Fuel Money pledge. While it may not technically violate the pledge, it clearly goes against its spirit.
“We defined the pledge’s rule to make it simple for candidates to commit to and follow, not to provide loopholes to continue raising funds from fossil fuel-adjacent sources. We hope all candidates who sign the pledge truly endorse its goal of ridding our politics of the influence of the fossil fuel industry. Unfortunately the fundraiser hosted by Andrew Goldman calls that commitment into question when it comes to Vice President Biden.”
RL Miller, Political Director of Climate Hawks Vote, said:
“We’re disappointed to see Vice President Biden attempting to cite the technicalities of the pledge rather than simply comply with its spirit. It’s not a good look. We urge Biden to cancel this fundraiser and instead commit to transforming our economy to clean energy and phasing out liquified natural gas and other fossil fuel infrastructure as rapidly as the science demands.”
Notes to Editors:
– Answers to Frequently Asked Questions about the No Fossil Fuel Money pledge can be found here: http://nofossilfuelmoney.org/FAQ
