Carper Slams Trump Administration’s Plan to Dismantle the Clean Power Plan

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tom Carper (D-Del.), top Democrat on the Environment and Public Works Committee, blasted the Trump Administration’s proposal to replace the Clean Power Plan, the most ambitious climate action the United States has ever taken.

“If I were grading the Trump Administration’s proposal to replace the Clean Power Plan, I would give it an ‘F.’ This egregious climate denial plan fails to protect the American people from the serious risks of climate change, fails to produce the same health and energy saving benefits that were achieved under the Clean Power Plan, and could send clean energy jobs to China. That alone would be enough for anyone to get a failing grade, but this proposal goes even further and allows polluters to increase the amount of smog and soot they emit into the air our children breathe. Only in President Trump’s world could good policy mean ignoring the threats of climate change, increasing consumer energy costs, sending jobs overseas, and threatening the lives of our country’s most vulnerable citizens.

“The American people deserve better, plain and simple. I will fight tooth and nail to keep this senseless policy that would especially harm low-lying, coastal states like Delaware and prevent it from moving forward. This administration must be held accountable for the actions it takes to reverse our progress on climate change, risk clean energy jobs here at home and damage our health. I’ve said this before, and I’ll say it again: repealing the Clean Power Plan and replacing it with a proposal as ill-conceived as this isn’t just a talking point. It will have serious consequences for the health of the public and our planet. It is possible to have clean air and also have a growing economy; the Clean Power Plan was built around that very premise, while the Trump Administration’s proposal fails to do either.”

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