(Bloomberg) -- President Joe Biden cast the climate crisis as a new economic opportunity for the US, saying his policies in office had developed “a new formula” to fight global warming while also creating jobs and bolstering domestic industries.
“When it comes to the climate, every time I talk about it, whether I was trying to convince labor or business to come along, I say ‘I think climate, I think jobs,’” Biden told executives gathered at the Bloomberg Global Business Forum in New York on Tuesday.
Biden’s remarks represented a bid to burnish his legacy confronting climate change and accelerating clean energy deployment weeks ahead of a pivotal US election set to dictate the country’s trajectory on the issues for years to come. The president also heralded Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, noting her own work on his climate agenda.
“Rather than a conversation about sacrifice or a focus on doing less, Kamala and I are pursuing an ambitious climate policy focused on growth,” Biden said.
Biden was explicit in drawing a contrast with Republican nominee Donald Trump, who has promised to roll back regulations curbing planet-warming pollution and claw back spending on climate, which the former president derides as Washington’s “green new scam.”
“His denial of climate change condemns our future generations to a more dangerous world,” Biden said.
“By the way, windmills do not cause cancer,” he added, referring to one of Trump’s oft-repeated criticisms of turbines.
Harris has not outlined detailed energy and environmental policy plans, but has championed climate legislation signed by Biden on the campaign trail and is expected to largely build on his initiatives if elected.
Green Investments
Biden hailed a wave of investments in clean technology manufacturing propelled by the Inflation Reduction Act and a surge in electric vehicles on US roadways. He linked the 2022 climate law’s benefits to improvements in communities that historically have faced the brunt of environmental harms.
“In just two years since the Inflation Reduction Act, we’ve created more than 330,000 clean energy jobs,” he said.
The president extolled rebate programs and other spending under the law, saying it had lowered energy costs for families and helped reduce the costs of installing rooftop solar and energy efficient appliances.
Biden’s emphasis on the job and investment benefits of fighting climate change dovetails with his broader bid to highlight progress fighting inflation, a major political liability for Harris on the campaign trail.
Biden has presided over a massive wave of investment in zero-emission power projects and domestic manufacturing of the equipment needed to drive a green energy transition, with companies announcing more than $100 billion in the ventures since enactment of the Inflation Reduction Act.
The hundreds of billions of dollars of clean energy and manufacturing subsidies in the climate law have drawn envy — and occasional scorn — around the globe. But Biden administration officials said the law is also galvanizing action and helping pare planet-warming pollution by lowering the costs of deploying renewable power worldwide.
--With assistance from Akshat Rathi.
©2024 Bloomberg L.P.
