Four Democrats running for president said in Wednesday night’s primary debate that the biggest threat to the U.S. is climate change.
Moderator Chuck Todd asked each of the 10 participating candidates to name the biggest geopolitical threat facing the country.
Some candidates mentioned China or Iran. But Beto O’Rourke, the former Texas congressman, answered with climate change.
“Our existential threat is climate change,” he said. “We have to confront it before it’s too late.”
He was followed by Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren, who also named climate change, along with New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker, who listed climate change and nuclear war as the biggest challenges. Julián Castro, the former secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, named climate change and China to be the nation’s biggest threats.
Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, running a campaign almost solely focused on climate change, said President Trump is the biggest threat to the country.
