With sights set on the climate crisis, the editorial board of the Los Angeles Times is encouraging President Joe Biden to declare a climate emergency as this will allow Biden to enact climate-focused legislation with executive authority.
The piece published considered whether the Inflation Reduction Act would appease Biden’s green energy agenda, with the suggestion being Biden could use executive authority for heavy-handed regulations.
“With congressional action now looking more likely, will Biden’s promise to confront the climate crisis with presidential proclamations, executive orders and regulatory power go unfulfilled?” the piece queried.
The editors also pointed to a growing threat of climate change, increasing the need for Biden to “deliver on his pledge.”
They write that Biden should use “every executive and administrative power legally available to him to protect Americans from climate-fueled disasters, boost renewable energy and shift away from fossil fuels.”
Citing the “additional tools and resources” declaring an emergency would unlock, they urge Biden to do it.
Despite concerns that Biden’s policies have raised prices and left the U.S. reliant on Russia, the editors say for Biden to reach his ambitious goal of halving the country’s greenhouse gases by 2030, more action needs to be taken by the Biden administration.
They also compared their call for Biden to use executive action it wouldn’t be like Trump, who they declared misused “ghat authority for his wall.” With Biden, they assert “there is actually a legitimate legal basis for calling climate change a national emergency.”
