Earlier this week, Kevin McCarthy, leader of Republicans in the House of Representatives, announced the formation of a task force on climate change. Led by Rep. Garret Graves, ranking member of the House Climate Committee, Graves's job will be to develop an "America First" legislative agenda on climate that will be introduced if Republicans regain the lower chamber in next year’s midterm elections.

While Democrats may find it tempting to dismiss the GOP plan as political distraction or a devious attempt to preserve the role of fossil fuels, they would be overlooking a shift within the GOP that could flip conventional climate policy thinking on its head. In the end, it may be Republicans who outflank Democrats, wholly devoted to supporting the nonbinding Paris Agreement, on how aggressively America should reduce global emissions.