Your weekly resource to learn what the environmental movement is saying about the news of the day and the political fight of our generation. This week, we’re covering, what else? Government shutdown, more attacks on clean energy, and how we’re holding the line against Republican policies that make our lives more expensive.
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“My message is this for the Republicans and to you, Mr. Trump, if you are watching: if you do not do this for us and millions of Americans, if this disease takes me because I am unable to maintain my health coverage, my blood is going to be on your hands.”
— Tony Gonzalez, adjunct professor and stage four cancer patient, on Republicans’ refusal to fund healthcare in their budget bill.
“Our democracy is badly broken when a president can illegally suspend projects for Blue states in order to punish his political enemies. They continue to break the law, and expect us to go along. Hell no.”
— Senator Adam Schiff (CA) on the Department of Energy’s cancellation of nearly $8 billion in clean energy projects.
“Whether it’s PJM, the grid operator; or FERC; or BPU; whether it’s President Trump rolling back some of the initiatives on solar, or adding $250 per family to your energy bill — everybody at the table’s at fault.”
— New Jersey gubernatorial candidate Mikie Sherrill on rising energy costs in the state.
NEW YORK ACCELERATES RENEWABLE ENERGY PROJECTS: To help lower energy costs, New York is speeding up construction of clean energy projects. The state is also soliciting new projects to meet energy demands and take advantage of federal clean energy tax credits before they expire.
NYLCV TAKE: New York LCV President Julie Tighe said, “While the federal government retreats, New York continues to march forward with reliable, affordable clean energy. NYSERDA’s plan to accelerate the construction and deployment of renewables is a critical step forward that will cut pollution, create good-paying jobs, and make our communities healthier and our grid more resilient. We applaud Governor Hochul for prioritizing the clean energy transition and showing the country what strong state leadership looks like.”
TEXAS COMMUNITIES MOBILIZE AGAINST DESALINATION PERMITS: Chispa Texas met with the Coastal Bend Fellowship of Churches to discuss November ballot measures and their campaign to halt the Inner Harbor/Hillcrest desalination permits. With the Gulf Coast Authority now considering involvement, they are urging community members to attend the Corpus Christi City Council Workshop today at 9 AM to show public concern, even without a designated time for open public comment.
LCV, MEMBERS OF CONGRESS, AND STATE PARTNERS HIGHLIGHT HARMFUL IMPACTS OF TRUMP SHUTDOWN: LCV held a virtual press conference on the negative impacts of Trump’s ongoing government shutdown on communities across the country. U.S. Representatives Steven Horsford, Sean Casten, Mike Levin, and Jennifer McClellan and state partners in the Conservation Voters Movement (CVM) spoke at the press conference.
OUR TAKE: LCV Senior Vice President of Government Affairs Tiernan Sittenfeld said, “Trump and Republicans need to stop gutting essential services that make life safer, healthier, and cheaper, and instead work together on bipartisan solutions to address the affordability crisis they’ve created. People are facing skyrocketing costs across the board, from health care, to groceries, to energy bills with Trump and Republicans in complete control over the federal government. Yet instead of working with Democrats to make our lives better, they’ve spent this year unlawfully taking back billions of dollars from communities while giving handouts to billionaires.”
CHISPA NV TAKE: Chispa Nevada Program Director Audrey Peral said, “In Nevada, utility bills have been going up and up over the last couple of years, and we have heard from many families who are having to make tough decisions about which bills to prioritize. Now we are in the midst of a government shutdown and are concerned about how this will hurt our economy even more. Combined with the smart energy programs the White House has either cut or threatened to cut, programs that help low-income families pay their gas and electricity bills or move us to less expensive clean energy – like LIHEAP and Solar for All – we have already been hit hard, and we simply can’t afford this. We firmly believe that under any administration, every family deserves access to clean air, clean energy, and a healthy environment.”
MLCV TAKE: Michigan LCV intern and Western Michigan University graduate student Olivia Gries said, “Trump and Congressional Republicans have made it clear that lowering costs is not in the cards for this budget and they are going to let the government shut down because of that. The Trump administration is forcing outdated and expensive coal plants to remain open while allowing the federal government to shut down. It’s clear where Trump’s priorities are focused. It’s time for Trump and the Republican led Congress to do the job they were elected to do and come to a bipartisan solution to protect their constituents and our environment.”
TRUMP ATTEMPTS TO EXPAND DIRTY, EXPENSIVE COAL: In another move that will raise people’s energy costs and threaten our health, the Trump administration announced its plans to further subsidize the coal industry with $625 million and open up millions of additional acres of public lands for coal leasing at a discounted rate. This move prioritizes Big Polluters by advancing dirty, expensive energy that will drive up costs and further harm our environment.
OUR TAKE: LCV Vice President of Federal Policy and former EPA scientist Matthew Davis said, “Even as energy prices are skyrocketing because of Trump administration policies, today they are again prioritizing Big Polluters over hardworking families. Clean energy is simply the cheapest and fastest energy to bring online so we can all have lower costs and cleaner air and water. Meanwhile, energy analysts have found that ‘99 percent of existing U.S. coal plants are more expensive to run than replacement by local wind, solar, and energy storage resources.’ Yet the Trump administration is determined to help the coal barons who have seen their fortunes wane as wind, solar and batteries deliver cheaper, cleaner electricity for families across the country.
“The Trump administration is also using extreme measures to force coal-fired power plants to stay open, as they are doing with the Campbell plant in Michigan–these actions are already raising electric bills for families and making our air and water dirtier. If the Trump administration actually cared about mine workers, they would be taking steps to protect their health like finalizing life-saving silica dust standards–not delaying them. By proposing to sell off 13 million acres of our public lands to Dirty Coal, the Trump administration is more than tripling what was passed as part of the Big Ugly Bill’s giveaway to fossil fuel, while lowering their royalty rate so coal companies pay less for the resources that belong to all of us. The Trump administration’s attempts to ban clean energy and prop up dirty and costly coal will not only cause costs to keep going up, but will also risk the health of our communities and threaten public lands that belong to all of us.”
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY CANCELS $8 BILLION FOR ENERGY PROJECTS IN BLUE STATES: Energy Secretary Chris Wright and OMB Director Russell Vought announced the cancellation of $7.56 billion in clean energy investments in 16 blue states. These politically targeted cuts will raise costs, eliminate jobs, and slash clean, affordable energy generation.
OUR TAKE: LCV Vice President of Government Affairs Sara Chieffo said, “President Trump and Russell Vought’s latest massive cuts to hundreds of energy projects in politically targeted states is a blatant example of corruption that will raise costs for households and businesses. At a time when energy demand is increasing, costs are already rising, and job losses are mounting, Trump and Republicans in Congress should be focused on funding and deploying the cheapest and fastest energy sources–clean energy– not gutting or banning them.
“Since he took office, Trump has unleashed an all-out attack on clean energy as part of a deliberate plan to benefit his friends in the oil, gas, and coal industries– at our expense. Republicans in Congress are trying to say that they can’t control what the White House does during the government shutdown, but that only further proves the point that the Trump administration is lawless and out of control and it’s the people of this country who are going to suffer. Congressional Republicans must get serious about working with Democrats on bipartisan bills to fund the government, lower costs, get people back to work, and protect communities, families, and our environment.”
REPUBLICANS SHUT DOWN FEDERAL GOVERNMENT: After refusing to work with Democrats to produce a bipartisan bill to keep families’ costs down and fund the government, Congressional Republicans and President Trump have shut down the federal government. As Trump continues to gut critical federal programs, it is essential for Republicans to work with Democrats to negotiate a spending bill that protects our communities and environment and lowers costs.
OUR TAKE: LCV Senior Vice President of Government Affairs Tiernan Sittenfeld said, “Trump and Republicans need to stop gutting essential services that make life safer, healthier, and cheaper, and instead work together on bipartisan solutions to address the affordability crisis they’ve created. People are facing skyrocketing costs across the board, from health care, to groceries, to energy bills with Trump and Republicans in complete control over the federal government. Yet instead of working with Democrats to make our lives better, they’ve spent this year unlawfully taking back billions of dollars from communities while giving handouts to billionaires.
“As energy demand soars, they’re trying to take away our affordable clean energy choices and good-paying jobs and instead spend taxpayer dollars on more expensive, slow, and dirty fossil fuels. It’s time for Trump and Republicans to get serious about working with Democrats on bipartisan bills to fund the government, get people back to work, and protect communities, families, and our environment.”
LCVAF ANNOUNCES SLATE OF ENDORSEMENTS FOR U.S. SENATE: The League of Conservation Voters (LCV) Action Fund, which works to elect candidates who will fight to build a clean energy economy and strengthen our democracy for all, announced new endorsements of seven climate champion U.S. senators for re-election next year. The endorsements include Senators Cory Booker (NJ), Chris Coons (DE), John Hickenlooper (CO), Ed Markey (MA), Jeff Merkley (OR), Ben Ray Luján (NM), and Jack Reed (RI).
LCVAF TAKE: LCV Action Fund Senior Vice President of Government Affairs Tiernan Sittenfeld said, “As Donald Trump and his Republican allies in Congress continuously and outrageously deny science, spread lies about climate change and clean energy, and disregard democratic norms, people across our country are suffering in the face of rising energy costs, more extreme weather disasters, and increasing attacks on our fundamental rights every day. That is why we need to re-elect these strong champions to the U.S. Senate who are fighting tirelessly for our planet and our democracy, and why we need to restore a pro-climate majority in the Senate. It’s never been more important to elect representatives who will protect people while Trump and extreme Republicans in Congress shut down the government unless they gut critical funding to line the pockets of their Big Polluter and corporate donors. We’re all-in to support these Senators to take back Congress next year and fight for our communities and our future generations.”
ON THE BLOG: We just dropped the top five stories of September, including a major water win in Texas, increased access to solar in New Jersey, an exciting ballot initiative to get money out of politics in Michigan, how states are protecting and strengthening democracy nationwide, and the fight to protect Arizona’s public lands.
ON OUR SOCIALS: We’re in the middle of a [Republican] government [shutdown]! We want to talk about it all over our socials. And if you’re saying. “Wait a minute, who [do] we have to stop this?” We have them, but they’re all in Trump’s pocket.
OCTOBER 13: Indigenous Peoples’ Day.
OCTOBER 18: No Kings October Mobilization.
OCTOBER 18: Clean Water Act 53rd anniversary.
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