Climate change has been elevated during the Democratic presidential primary campaign like never before, and that must continue in the general election for Hillary Clinton to defeat Donald Trump, an environmental leader said Thursday.
Gene Karpinski, president of the League of Conservation Voters, said climate change needs to be kept on the forefront of policy debates during the general election. For those who care about the climate, an issue that resonates well with independent voters, the former secretary of state must be the choice for president, he said.
“The stakes could not be higher, the contrast could not be sharper between Donald Trump, who is a climate change denier and frankly seems to be proud of it … and Hillary Clinton,” Karpinski said.
Climate change has come a long way in being a part of the debate during election season. Karpinski pointed to the 2012 presidential debates between President Obama and Mitt Romney, when neither candidate was asked about climate change.
Democratic presidential candidates spoke often about climate change during primary season and Republicans faced questions about their climate change policies during debates. That represents an elevation of the issue, but it’s not enough, Karpinski said.
“There’s been a lot more conversation in the primaries, we’re seeing it in the conversations this week … and we’re looking forward to continuing that conversation in the fall because of what’s at stake,” he said.
Karpinski is set to speak to the convention Thursday afternoon. He announced that the League of Conservation Voters is adding Trump to its list of the “Dirty Dozen,” which he called the group’s signature list of anti-environmentalist politicians.
Trump previously has expressed his belief that climate change is not taking place and that it is possibly a hoax created by the Chinese. He has promised to withdraw the United States from the Paris Agreement on climate change, the world’s first climate agreement reached in December 2015.
“We’re excited to put dirty, dangerous, denier Donald Trump on our Dirty Dozen list and we’re going to do all we can to make sure Hillary Clinton is president and Donald Trump is not,” Karpinski said.
