Beto O’Rourke, who has described climate change as the top issue of his campaign, released a proposal that would spend trillions of dollars to wean the country off fossil fuels with a goal to reduce net greenhouse gas emissions to zero by 2050.
Democratic presidential candidate and former Texas Rep. Beto O'Rourke, left, talks with Anne Kelly, director of the Sierra Nevada Research Stations, and environmental advocate Leslie Martinez in Yosemite National Park.
“It’s a really powerful experience,” he said, “to think of some of the oldest organisms, oldest life on the face of the planet … and then lives coming to existence right now, human life, that is compromised by what we’re doing to one another, to this planet and to sacred places like Yosemite.” O’Rourke proposes $1.5 trillion in federal spending, which could then be combined with state and local dollars as well as private capital for a total $5-trillion package.
By setting that standard, O’Rourke’s proposal said, it would send a clear message to polluters that there was a price for emitting carbon. The plan does not lay out a specific way to set that price and, therefore, to charge producers of greenhouse gas. There have generally been two policy approaches to carbon pricing: a carbon tax or a cap-and-trade system, under which polluters need to purchase permits to emit.
“We’re talking about ensuring that leadership at every level, from governments to entrepreneurship to farmers and ranchers and those that produce the food and fiber upon which we depend, is brought to bear on this challenge,” O’Rourke said. “This is by far the most ambitious plan to confront climate change that we have ever seen.”
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Democratic presidential hopeful Beto O'Rourke proposes $5 trillion climate change planBeto O'Rourke pitches 'world's largest-ever climate change investment,' largely funded through changes to the tax code.
Read more »
Beto O'Rourke releases $5 trillion plan to combat climate crisisNEW: Beto O’Rourke has released a sweeping, $5T plan to combat what he regularly refers to as the “greatest threat” our nation faces: climate change.
Read more »
Beto O'Rourke rolls out $5 trillion plan to combat climate changeDemocratic presidential candidate Beto O'Rourke unveiled a sweeping $5 trillion plan on Monday to combat the effects of climate change.
Read more »
O'Rourke releases plan to fight climate change with $5 trillion investment and net-zero emissions by 2050Beto O'Rourke releases plan to fight climate change with $5 trillion investment and net-zero emissions by 2050
Read more »
O'Rourke calls for $5 trillion to fight climate changeDemocratic presidential candidate Beto O'Rourke labeled climate change 'the greatest threat we face' as he called for $5 trillion to be spent over the next decade to neutralize carbon emissions
Read more »
Beto O'Rourke unveils climate plan with Yosemite as backdropDemocratic presidential candidate Beto O'Rourke has announced his first major policy initiative, a $5 trillion plan to combat climate change that he says will keep the Earth from sliding past the point of no return in less than a generation. The former Texas congressman unveiled his proposal on
Read more »
Biden, Sanders, Trump top 2020 presidential candidates among college students, poll findsFormer Representative Beto O'Rourke came in fourth in the poll of more than 1,000 students.
Read more »
Beto O’Rourke opens his California campaign Saturday in Los AngelesDemocratic presidential candidate Beto O'Rourke will launch his 2020 California Democratic presidential primary campaign on Saturday with a four-day swing, stopping in Los Angeles, San Francisco, the Central Valley and San Diego.
Read more »
Beto gets backing from rock group Hawkwind's leaderThe rock band Hawkwind's leader wished Beto O'Rourke luck 'From one Psychedelic Warlord to another.'
Read more »