As we have explored in previous blogs, there are areas of the US that rely heavily on the use of fossil fuels. Many of these areas vote republican come election time. According to a 2018 Gallop Poll, only 33% of republicans, “worry a great deal” about climate change. This varies greatly compared to Democrats, as according the same 2018 Gallop Poll 91% of democrats “worry a great deal” about climate change. This discrepancy in ideology between the United States’ two major political parties is telling as why the US has not taken the lead on climate change policy. This blog examines this discrepancy, while also outlining conservative options to dealing with a changing climate.

It is no surprise to those who stay up to date with this news, especially come election time, that republicans and democrats do not share similar views on climate change. In the last presidential election, democrats Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders took strong stances on the desire to combat climate change. Bernie Sanders’ website, berniesanders.com, actually still has an interactive page titled “Combating Climate Change to Save the Planet #PeopleBeforePolluters” where renewable energy options for each state in the US are outlined in great detail. You can check that webpage out HERE. For Donald Trump and the rest of the republican party it is a different story. Trump’s infamous tweet that stated that the “concept of global warming was created by and for the Chinese…” is an example of the stereotypical republican party perception on climate change. This discrepancy in beliefs among political parties is a key factor in the lack of action the United States has had on combating climate change compared to other industrialized countries.

As mentioned in my blog titled Renewable Energy Opportunities for Fossil Fuel States, I mentioned how states like Pennsylvania and West Virginia, who rely on fossil fuels to run their economies, have the least amount of belief among residents that climate change exists. Areas of the country that are run by fossil fuels also tend to vote republican come election time. West Virginia for example is run by republicans. Pre-2018 election season, both houses of the West Virginia state legislature were controlled by republicans, 4 of the 5 US congress representatives and the governor were also republican. With republicans running many areas of the country and not believing climate change is real or believing it is real but not an issue we should be concerned about, how can their perception of climate change… change?

I believe it can be done through recognition that there is a way climate change policy can be implemented in a conservative manner. Wouldn’t it be nice if the only debate on climate was whether climate change policy would be better for Americans as opposed to whether or not climate change is real? The fact of the matter is there are conservative measures that could be put in place to curb climate change. Bob Inglis is the poster child of the fight to change republican’s views on this issue. Inglis is a former US congressman from the state of South Carolina, who lost his seat in congress in part due to his beliefs on climate change. As described in his bio on George Mason University’s Center for Climate Change Communication website, after losing his seat in congress Inglis began his mission to promote conservative action on climate change. This mission led him to start up Republicen.org, which is a website that promotes Inglis belief in free enterprise, conservative action on climate change. Republicen.org describes that free enterprise action can be done through environmental tax reform where energy subsidies are removed and a “revenue-neutral, border adjustable” carbon tax is put into place. This policy is laid out in great detail in a C-SPAN interview that took place in August of 2016. The interview with Ingles lasts close to fifty minutes, but I encourage you to sit down and listen because Inglis outlines this policy in-depth and takes numerous questions from listeners.

I believe a carbon tax system as presented by Inglis would be a stepping stone for gathering conservative support for climate change policy reform. The plan of removing subsides for energy subsides would be tough for democrats to support though, as many believe that the subsides allow renewable energy companies to keep pace with the oil and gas industry. Inglis does address this in the interview previously mentioned, stating that placing a tax on the amount of carbon emitted by industries would be a far trade off to providing subsidies for renewable energy. He also mentions that making the tax “revenue-neutral” and “border adjustable” would not increase the size of the government, while also taxing imports of carbon which helps companies in America compete with foreign providers of energy. I think that conservatives would be open to such measures as they fall in line with policies policies in place in different sectors that have already been supported by republicans. Many democrats believe a Cap-And-Trade system like the European Union’s Emission Trading System (EU ETS) is the policy to combat climate change. Cap-And-Trade systems have been proposed in the United States, namely the American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009 which would’ve implemented a trading scheme similar to the EU ETS. Emissions trading systems have been mired in controversy in the United States and similar trading systems have not had very much republican support. That is why I believe a carbon tax system would be the best option for a country like the US. Although Cap-And-Trade systems are what democrats are fighting for, I think if a carbon tax was proposed by a republican controlled congress, like we have now, democrats would be likely to hop on board.

Getting republicans on board with policies to combat climate change is an uphill battle. Breaking through the hold that fossil fuel companies have on the working-class areas of the country is definitely a tough task, but I believe that a carbon tax like described by Bob Ingles could be what it takes to get those areas on board. According to a report done by Alliance For Market Solutions, found that 77% of millennials think that something should be done to try and stop or slow down climate change. The support is high among younger generations to do something about climate change, meaning we are only getting closer to something actually being done. It is my hope that Ingles can use his Republicen.org message to get younger republicans wanting to do something about climate change. As a young American myself, I hope that we as country can do something to preserve our beautiful Earth.

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