Paris Climate Accord: Trump calls it a 'disaster'. But what does the Paris Climate Accord mean for the US? - by Louise Boyle

Towards the end of Tuesday night’s fractious presidential debate, moderator Chris Wallace dropped in a surprise question on the climate crisis, leading both candidates to lay out their opposing stances on the Paris Climate Accord. “If you look at the Paris Accord, it was a disaster from our standpoint. And people are actually very happy about what’s going on because our businesses are doing well," President Trump said. Former vice president Joe Biden vowed that, if he wins the election, “the first thing" he would do is rejoin the global agreement. “I will join the Paris Accord because with us out of it, look what’s happening. It’s all falling apart,” he said, pointing to the rampant destruction of Brazil’s rainforests, happening in the vacuum of US diplomatic leadership.

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Climate crisis: 11,000 scientists warn of ‘untold suffering’ - as Trump now formally takes the US out of the climate accord

Statement sets out ‘vital signs’ as indicators of magnitude of the climate emergency.

Read more at:
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/nov/05/climate-crisis-11000-scientists-warn-of-untold-suffering?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Add_to_Firefox

France - US Relations: French President Emmanuel Macron rocks US Congress with great speech

French President Emmanuel Macron hit on the issues of climate change, nationalism, trade and the 2015 Iran nuclear deal in his speech to a joint session of US Congress, calling on the United States to engage more with the world.

After what has been seen as a friendly state visit to Washington, Macron's speech laid out a view of global leadership starkly different from US President Donald Trump's "America First."

What Macron said

• The United States and France have a long history together
• He criticized Trump's isolationist principles
• Climate change is real. We have no Planet B
• Macron is sure the US will someday come back to to the Paris Agreement
• We must fight against fake news
• Iran will never have nuclear weapons nuclear weapons
• At a press conference later, Macron said he believed Trump would pull the US out of the Iran nuclear deal

"We have disagreements between the United States and France. It may happen, like in all families," Macron said.

Read more: French President Emmanuel Macron rocks US Congress with speech | News | DW | 25.04.2018

USA: Landmark California bill for 100% clean energy unexpectedly put on hold until next year - by Sammy Roth

California lawmakers will go home for the year without voting on a landmark renewable energy bill, in an unexpected setback for the state’s efforts to lead the world in fighting climate change.

The bill would have required California to get 60 percent of its electricity from renewable sources like solar and wind by 2030, up from the current legal mandate of 50 percent. It also would have tasked state regulators with charting a path to 100 percent carbon-free electricity by 2045, which could have included energy sources not considered “renewable,” like nuclear power, large hydropower plants and gas-fired power plants that capture their carbon emissions.

State senators approved the legislation by a 25-13 margin in May, and for months its eventual passage in the Assembly looked like a foregone conclusion. But the bill got held up after unexpectedly strong opposition from investor-owned utilities like Southern California Edison and San Diego Gas & Electric, which argued it did not adequately protect their customers from potential increases in electricity costs. Unions also worked to kill the bill in the final week of session, after legislative leaders wouldn’t include provisions sought by organized labor.

Assembly member Chris Holden, a Pasadena Democrat who chairs the Assembly’s utilities and energy committee, said earlier this week he wouldn’t move the bill out of his committee because it didn’t have enough support to pass the chamber. He held to that stance as the legislative session came to a close Friday night, even as climate advocates urged him to advance the bill.

The bill’s failure was a major defeat for Gov. Jerry Brown and powerful Senate leader Kevin de León, a Los Angeles Democrat who wrote the legislation. It was also disheartening for climate and clean energy advocates, who have touted California as a global leader in the fight against climate change — an especially important role now that the Trump administration has backed out of the Paris climate agreement and is working to undo many Obama-era climate initiatives.

Read more: Kevin De Leon's SB 100 renewable energy bill on hold until next year

Climate Change is real: Canadian co-author of U.S. climate report says findings 'flatly contradict' Trump administration

A Canadian scientist who helped author an exhaustive U.S. draft report on climate change says the study makes it clear dramatic action is needed to stop global temperatures from rising, but that her team has no idea how the Trump administration will react to it.

The report, written by scientists from 13 federal agencies, concludes that the United States is already feeling the effects of climate change, with a stark increase in the frequency of heat waves, heavy rains and other extreme weather over the last four decades.

The report is now awaiting approval from U.S. President Donald Trump's administration.

"The reality is we need that policy mechanism to point us in the right direction as well, because otherwise we, as humans, are just resistant to change," said Katharine Hayhoe, director of the Texas Tech University Climate Science Center, in an interview with CBC Radio's The House.

"We're like, 'Why can't we do it the way we've always done it?" Well, we can't because we've found out there are side-effects," she said.

Read more: Canadian co-author of U.S. climate report says findings 'flatly contradict' Trump administration - Politics - CBC News

France-US Relations: US friendship with France 'unbreakable', Trump says on Paris visit

French President Emmanuel Macron and US President Donald Trump gave a joint press conference on Thursday as the US leader arrived to take part in Bastille Day celebrations.

"The friendship between our two nations and ourselves is unbreakable," Trump said after bilateral talks focused on joint US-French efforts to fight terrorism in the Middle East and Africa.

Macron said he and Trump were able to discuss how best to combat "a global threat with enemies who are trying to destabilise us".

The French president also acknowledged that sharp differences remain with Trump when it comes to the Paris climate agreement but noted that the US withdrawal from the Paris accord was one of Trump’s campaign promises.

"I respect the decision of President Trump," Macron told a joint news conference in Paris. "As a result he will lead the necessary thought and work that correspond to his campaign promises. For my part, I remain committed to the Paris accord."

Read more: US friendship with France 'unbreakable', Trump says on Paris visit - France 24

Paris Climate Accord: Turkey: Erdogan says U.S. stance stalls Turkish ratification of Paris climate deal

The U.S. decision to pull out of the Paris climate agreement means Turkey is less inclined to ratify the deal because the U.S. move jeopardizes compensation promised to developing countries, President Tayyip Erdogan said on Saturday. 
Erdogan was speaking at the G20 summit in Germany where leaders from the world's leading economies broke with U.S. President Donald Trump over climate policy, following his announcement last month that he was withdrawing from the accord.

Erdogan said that when Turkey signed the accord France had promised that Turkey would be eligible for compensation for some of the financial costs of compliance.

"So we said if this would happen, the agreement would pass through parliament. But otherwise it won't pass," Erdogan told a news conference, adding that parliament had not yet approved it.

"Therefore, after this step taken by the United States, our position steers a course towards not passing this from the parliament," he said
 
Read more: Erdogan says U.S. stance stalls Turkish ratification of Paris climate deal | Reuters