The White House on Wednesday dismissed an assertion by Donald Trump that he would renegotiate America’s role in the U.N. global climate accord signed in Paris last December.
“I don’t think there’s anyone that is losing sleep about that here at the White House,” presidential press secretary Josh Earnest told reporters when asked about Trump’s comments about the climate in a Reuters interview.
Earnest highlighted President Obama’s leadership role in bringing 190 countries together to agree to the sweeping treaty to curb carbon emissions globally.
“It is an agreement that took years to negotiate and is only possible because of the leadership of the United States,” Earnest said, noting that Obama did the groundwork to persuade China to come on board. “This agreement was catalyzed when President Obama announced it alongside [Chinese] President Xi.”
Earnest also stressed that the climate accord is benefiting the U.S. economy, as Westinghouse has committed to build four nuclear plants in China.
“That’s a pretty clear example of how the world commitment to a low carbon future has a positive economic impact on the U.S.,” he said.
