Senator Cory Booker is the latest Democrat to jump onto the climate change bandwagon and offer up a plan of his own. We he called the “Environmental Justice Fund,” Booker hopes to pass a $3 trillion plan that he hopes will combat climate change and slow down the earth’s warming.
There are already plenty of critics of this deal. Creating a $3 trillion program when the country is already trillions in debt and there are more pressing spending needs, like trillions needed to upgrade our country’s infrastructure, many opponents feel now is not the time to keep upping the spending. But Booker feels that climate change is our country’s biggest threat and it must be addressed sooner rather than later.
“To end the real and growing threat of climate change and to create a more just country for everyone, we must heal these past mistakes and act boldly to create a green and equitable future. That’s exactly what I’ll do as president,” Booker said in a statement.
Booker also tweeted: “We’re facing a dual crisis of climate change and economic inequality—and without immediate action, the toll is unimaginable. But this is a fight I know we can win.”
The Time is Now
Many on the Democratic side feel there is no time left to combat the problem. Where the Green New Deal was too bold and mostly laughed off, even by Democrats, they still believe the threat is immediate and the cost is too high if we don’t start making changes immediately. Many are even saying we have 12 years to face the problem or we’re doomed.
“The reality is that we can’t afford not to act. We spend more than $100 billion each year solely on the health impacts of burning fossil fuels, and have spent $450 billion on climate-related disasters in the last three years alone. A recent paper in the National Bureau of Economic Research found that the U.S. economy could shrink by more than 10 percent by 2100 if we don’t act decisively on climate change,” writes Booker.
“As we set out to tackle the existential challenge of climate change, we must ensure that all people and all communities, especially the ones that have been traditionally left behind — urban and rural, communities of color, low-income, and indigenous — share in our progress. Acting together, we can and must find our common purpose, and build a sustainable and equitable future for all,” adds the statement.
More details about the plan are set to be released in the coming days, but we should expect more plans like this from the Democrats as they continue to ramp up their 2020 campaigns. Senator Booker is one top Democrats running for president.
