Meet the “new” Green New Deal…same as the old Green New Deal.
When House Democrats introduced their new climate plan it’s clear they did so not as a serious proposal, but to give cover to Joe Biden. Their problem? Not even their own members are buying it.
You might recall the first version of the Green New Deal met with disaster even among Democrats. Despite her prime role as a media darling, AOC has never had the ability to bring her Green New Deal to a vote in the House. Democrat leaders, including Speaker Pelosi, never signed on to it and the bill was so radioactive not a single member of the Senate voted in favor of it.
For all the attention the eco-radicals and the media garnished for the first Green New Deal, it seems like not a single leader in Washington was eager to actually vote for it. Of course they had good reason, they know it spells catastrophe.
Now Democrats are taking the lemon-with-a-new-coat-of-paint approach to their environmental policy by hoping you won’t notice their new “plan” is just as out of touch as the old one. The goal is clear: Democrats are betting this proposal will appear more reasonable than the original Green New Deal and Biden won’t look like an AOC climate puppet. However, it’s just as much a threat to America’s middle class families, or even worse.
Under the plan, every American will need to budget for a new electric vehicle in the years ahead. They will also need to prepare for skyrocketing electric bills that are the result of government restricting the open energy market. Families already struggling to make ends meet will have to grapple with electric bills increasing 17 percent and forced to pay thousands to come into compliance with the law. All this at the same time millions of their neighbors lose their job in energy producing states like Pennsylvania, Louisiana and New Mexico.
That’s exactly why not all House Democrats are on board with Green New Deal 2.0. New Mexico Democrat Congresswoman Xochitl Torres Small, who represents an energy rich district, has come out against the new plan calling it “out of touch with the reality on the ground in New Mexico.” Without a doubt, more representatives in other energy rich states will reach the same conclusion.
Of all the descriptions of the House Democrat climate plan, “out of touch with reality” might just be the nicest.
The dirty little secret of both Green New Deal plans is that neither is a serious proposal designed to actually pass Congress. They are designed for one reason: to help Joe Biden appease radical environmental special interests and … Bernie voters.
The House Democrat plan allows Joe Biden to pretend he’s flexing green muscles while also distancing himself from the first Green New Deal. The problem for Biden and House Democrats is that no one was fooled by the original Green New Deal, and not even his own party will buy into this one.
No matter how much new paint they throw on it.
Larry Behrens is the Western States Director for Power The Future, an organization fighting for America’s Energy Workers. He is a former journalist and previously served as Communications Director for New Mexico Governor Susana Martinez. You can find him on Twitter at @larrybehrens and @PTFNewMexico or email at larry@powerthefuture.com