Biden's final push on climate insanity: US emissions reduction target increases

The Biden administration is scrambling during its last days at the helm of the White House to shield the Democrat's key policies as best as possible. Before passing the baton to Donald Trump, the still-president's team announced an increase in the national emissions reduction target to 61-66% by 2035, up from the 50-52% committed for 2030. Speaking to reporters, special climate envoy John Podesta expressed confidence that, with the Republican in the Oval Office, it will be businesses and states who will pull the cart to get there.

With this significant advance in the goal of reducing emissions as a percentage of the gases emitted in 2005, Biden assured that he places the country "on the path to zero emissions" by 2050. In a video sent to the media, the president assured that under his mandate "the boldest climate agenda in the history of the United States" has been developed.

Biden is confident that Trump's arrival will not prevent the goal from being reached

Biden, moreover, predicted that Trump's arrival, despite his commitment to reverse the Democrat's green agenda, will not be able to stop this progress: "American industry will keep inventing and keep investing. ... State, local, and tribal governments will keep stepping up. And together, we will turn this existential threat into a once-in-a-generation opportunity to transform our nation for generations to come."

In a call with reporters, Podesta insisted on this idea, asserting that while Trump "may put climate action on the back burner," the private sector and state and local governments can drive progress. "It's not an illusion, it's happened before," he stressed.

In addition, Podesta stressed the importance of U.S. leadership for the world to follow on climate policies: "The truth is, U.S. climate leadership has motivated the world to move faster. After President Biden set an ambitious 2030 climate target in 2021, Japan, South Korea, Australia, Canada, Mexico, and others delivered stronger, more ambitious targets. Once we passed the IRA, other countries — like Japan, Australia, the E.U., and the U.K. — adopted our government-enabled, private sector-led strategy to investment in clean energy."

US far from meeting 2030 commitments

However, despite the Biden administration's brags, the U.S. remains far from meeting the targets set for 2030. In fact, according to a recent report by the independent group Rhodium, shared by AFP, Washington is on track for a 32-43% reduction by 2030, short of the 50-52% goal set by Biden. These data are refuted by the administration, where a senior official assured that at the moment it is around 45-46%.

In a response to AFP, the spokeswoman for Trump's transition team and future Press Secretary Katherine Leavitt noted that "In his first term, President Trump promoted conservation and environmental stewardship, while promoting economic growth for families. President Trump's policies produced affordable, reliable energy for consumers along with stable, good-paying jobs, all while dropping U.S. carbon emissions to their lowest level in 25 years."