Political games continued in the senate today where Republicans held a vote to politicize a progressive environmental proposal, without any committees or hearings to hear from actual experts on the topic.
The move was aimed at putting Democrats from more moderate states in a tough position, forcing them to choose between backing a popular liberal idea and potentially turning off some of their constituents.
The vote on the procedural motion failed on a 0-57 margin, with 43 Democrats voting “present” to protest the GOP tactics.
Just three Democrats — Sens. Doug Jones (Ala.), Joe Manchin (W.Va.) and Kyrsten Sinema (Ariz.) — broke with their party to vote against the proposal for massive clean energy and infrastructure investments to rapidly slash greenhouse gas emissions and attempt to break economic inequality.
The rest voted present, including six presidential candidates who co-sponsored the non-binding resolution S.J. Res. 8. Sen. Angus King (I-Maine), who caucuses with Democrats, also joined Republicans in voting no on today.
The Green New Deal is a statement of goals and doesn’t make specific policy proposals, nor does it specify how it would pay for its ambitious plans.
The plan aims to slow climate change by ending the reliance on fossil fuels within 10 years; to upgrade power grids and existing buildings for maximum energy efficiency; to overhaul transportation systems; and to provide every American with a job and health care.
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), a co-sponsor of the resolution and leading presidential candidate, voted present with the rest of the Democratic caucus.
“It is beyond belief that when the scientists tell us we have 12 years before there will be irreparable damage to this planet, you have leadership here that is playing political games,” Sanders told reporters.
McConnell slammed Democrats for moving to the left on a host of issues.
“The Senate is going to vote on the far-left wish list that many of our Democratic colleagues have rushed to embrace – the so-called Green New Deal,” said McConnell. “For a relatively sparse resolution, this proposal has already traveled quite a fascinating path here in Congress. It originated with the most radical, farthest-left members of the new House Democrat majority.”
Republicans have railed against Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and Sen. Ed Markey’s (D-Mass.) resolution as a “disastrous socialist vision” and “a big green bomb.”
“The Green New Deal as proposed and advocated by many of its sponsors and promoters would actually be devastating and disastrous for the ag economy in South Dakota and for pretty much every other sector of the economy in this country,” Senate Majority Whip John Thune (R-S.D.) said at a press conference. “We look forward to and are anxious to have this debate.”
But Democrats say the Republican vote has elevated an issue voters increasingly say the government should address.
Ahead of the vote, Democrats and Republicans exchanged bitter words on the Senate floor while Ocasio-Cortez slammed the Republican senator who mocked her Green New Deal in a speech that used props and photos – including one of a Aquaman riding seahorse – to make his point.
GOP Senators are using their Congressional allowances to print Aquaman posters for themselves to argue that a #GreenNewDeal saving our nation from climate change is a ‘waste of money’ ? https://t.co/iMNY0dJmCy
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) March 26, 2019
Lee, in a colorful speech, used a variety of photos to make his point, including Aquaman on a sea horse, Ronald Reagan and a dinosaur, a still from the ‘Star Wars’ franchise of Luke Skywalker riding a tauntaun, and cows.
According to NASA, multiple studies published in peer-reviewed scientific journals1 show that 97 percent or more of actively publishing climate scientists agree that climate-warming trends over the past century are extremely likely due to human activities.