The Democratic National Platform Committee meets today in Orlando. Climate Hawks Vote calls upon the Democrats to take bold climate action, instead of the incremental approach espoused by Hillary Clinton and her chosen representatives. Specifically, Climate Hawks Vote demands that the platform embrace:
a national moratorium on fracking, similar to the one in the California Democratic Party platform;
an economy-wide price on greenhouse-gas pollution;
application of President Obama’s Keystone XL climate test – “if it would significantly exacerbate global warming, don’t do it” – to all federal agencies’ decisions;
and clear language that a fossil-fuel economy is incompatible with “clean energy” or climate and environmental justice.
RL Miller, cofounder of Climate Hawks Vote, states: “This isn’t a Bernie-vs-Hillary debate. This is a moment of truth for the Democratic Party. Rejecting ‘all of the above’ language is a good first step, but it’s hardly sufficient. Democrats need to stand for policies that respect the scientific and moral urgency of the climate crisis, and not rely on incrementalism and political compromise.”
Climate Hawks Vote and other groups have already delivered 100,000 signatures to the DNC calling for a ban on fracking. Miller, who serves as the chair of the California Democratic Party’s environmental caucus, helped write into that state party’s platform an indefinite moratorium on fracking.
Miller also states: “During the draft committee debate, the Clinton representatives held up California’s climate toolbox as a model. California’s tools include both regulatory limits on pollution and an economy-wide price on carbon—something both supporters of Clinton and Sanders can embrace.”
About Climate Hawks Vote: We’re a grassroots-funded organization building political power for the climate movement. Hatched in 2014, we endorsed 17 candidates and won 11 of those races. We hold politicians accountable through a sophisticated scorecard tracking not only votes, but also leadership and public engagement on climate. Our board of directors includes Bill McKibben and Jigar Shah.
