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Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Energy & Oil
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OpEd: Green New Deal idea borrowed from Green Party
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the wunderkind congresswoman from New York, has been getting most of the credit for the Green New Deal, an ambitious plan to fight global warming that has become increasingly popular among Democrats. But Green Party candidate
Howie Hawkins wants to set the record straight. "A lot of people think AOC thought it up," he told me. "But I'm the original Green New Dealer."Some greens are now irked at the Democrats' attempt to claim ownership of the idea.
Why should there be attention given to Greens, though, now that Democrats have embraced the Green New Deal? Simple, said one Green Party analyst: "This Democratic version of the Green New Deal is watered down. It pales in comparison to ours."
The Green Party's Green New Deal is indeed more expansive. The two plans have the same goal of 100 percent renewable energy by the year 2030, and they both call for universal health care and a federal job guarantee.
Source: The New Republic magazine on 2018 Congress NY-14 election
, Feb 22, 2019
Keep existing nuclear power plants but block new ones
While focusing on renewable energy, Ocasio-Cortez said the plan [in a resolution in support of the Green New Deal] would include existing nuclear power plants but block new nuclear plants. Nuclear power does not emit greenhouse gases, which contribute
to global warming.The resolution does not include a price tag, but some Republicans predict it would cost in the trillions of dollars. They denounced the plan at House hearings on climate change on Wednesday.
The Green New Deal would be paid for "the same way we paid for the original New Deal, World War II, the bank bailouts, tax cuts for the rich and decades of war--with public money appropriated by
Congress," Ocasio-Cortez said. Government can take an equity stake in Green New Deal projects "so the public gets a return on its investment," she said.
Source: Bangor Daily News on 2018 Congressional NY-14 election
, Feb 7, 2019
Move to a carbon-free, 100% renewable energy system
Alexandria strongly supports transitioning the United States to a carbon-free, 100% renewable energy system and a fully modernized electrical grid by 2035. By encouraging the electrification of vehicles, sustainable home heating,
distributed rooftop solar generation, and the conversion of the power grid to zero-emissions energy sources, Alexandria believes we can be 100% free of fossil fuels by 2035. ÿ
Source: 2018 Congressional NY-14th election website Ocasio2018.com
, Oct 9, 2018
PVS:Fund renewable energy like wind and solar.
Ocasio-Cortez supports the PVS survey question on renewable energy
Project Vote Smart inferred whether candidates agree or disagree with the statement, 'Energy & Environment: Do you support government funding for the development of renewable energy (e.g. solar, wind, thermal)?'
PVS self-description: "The Political Courage Test provides voters with positions on key issues. Historically, candidates have failed to complete our test due to the advice they receive from their advisors and out of fear of negative attack ads."
Source: PVS Survey 18PVS-18a on Aug 1, 2018
PVS:Regulate greenhouse gas emissions.
Ocasio-Cortez supports the PVS survey question on regulating GHGs
Project Vote Smart inferred whether candidates agree or disagree with the statement, 'Energy & Environment: Do you support the federal regulation of greenhouse gas emissions?'
PVS self-description: "The Political Courage Test provides voters with positions on key issues. Historically, candidates have failed to complete our test due to the advice they receive from their advisors and out of fear of negative attack ads."
Source: PVS Survey 18PVS-18b on Aug 1, 2018
Sponsored Green New Deal: 10-year national mobilization.
Ocasio-Cortez sponsored the Resolution on Green New Deal
This resolution calls for the creation of a Green New Deal with the goals of:
- achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions;
- establishing millions of high-wage jobs and ensuring economic security for all;
- investing in infrastructure and industry;
- securing clean air and water, climate and community resiliency, healthy food, access to nature, and a sustainable environment for all; and
- promoting justice and equality.
The resolution calls for accomplishment of these goals through a 10-year national mobilization effort. The resolution also enumerates the goals and projects of the mobilization effort, including:building smart power grids (i.e., power grids that enable customers to reduce their power use during peak demand periods);upgrading all existing buildings and constructing new buildings to achieve maximum energy and water efficiency;removing pollution and greenhouse gas emissions from the transportation and agricultural sectors;
cleaning up existing hazardous waste and abandoned sites;ensuring businesspersons are free from unfair competition; andproviding higher education, high-quality health care, and affordable, safe, and adequate housing to all.Opposing argument from the Cato Institute, 2/24/2019: While reasonable people can disagree on some aspects of the Green New Deal's proposals, one fact is uncontroversial: the US cannot afford them. The Green New Deal would likely cost upwards of $6.6 trillion per year. The federal government should look for cheaper ways to address problems like climate change. Instead of the Green New Deal, the federal government could adopt a revenue??neutral carbon tax to decrease emissions without exacerbating the fiscal imbalance. Economists from across the political spectrum support carbon taxation as the most cost??effective way to address climate change. And a carbon tax would be most effective if uniformly adopted by other countries, too.
Source: H.Res.109/S.Res.59 19-HR0109 on Feb 7, 2019
Page last updated: Dec 25, 2020