It’s not that few have heard about it, per se.
It’s more that there’s an intense disinformation and misinformation campaign about it. Run largely by people who should be celebrating the victories that have been made, but who instead just handwave away all progress as insufficient. Because they really, really, really hate Biden, and so accepting that he’s good on an issue (which he just plain is on climate) is not compatible with their worldviews.
You’ll see it in this thread just as assuredly as anywhere.
Where yo WON’T hear it is among policy wonks. The IRA is celebrated in serious climate circles. Just listen to, say, David Roberts (http://volts.wtf), for example, and you can barely get through any segment without talking about how much it has unlocked renewable spending/expansion.
And it’s not the endgame, it’s just the first step along a new path. It’s even built into the law that it will make further efforts politically and financially easier.
Meanwhile, people who claim they care deeply about climate don’t even know what the IRA is. I’m not one to gatekeep, but it really does show how shallow climate reporting in the greater media landscape is.
The irony is, refusing to see how much progress has been made on climate under Biden may condemn us to lose it all when Trump gets reelected as a result and follows through on his promises to reverse courses on green energy in all its forms and vastly scale up drilling and LNG. Because Trump would potentially be able to cripple the act and the institutions it created even without control of congress.
From one Admiral to another: well said.
Ya it doesn’t seem like he does care
He’s actually done a lot — the Inflation Reduction Act is the biggest piece of climate policy the US has done.
It’s not sufficient on its own, but it’s a good beginning.
It’s likely the biggest piece of climate policy the world has ever seen. Estimated to be close to $1.3 trillion in total investment, nearly entirely in renewables and their halo.
It’s completely changing the entire market. The wonks who really get deep in policy are ecstatic about it. An amazing bill that does so much to make immediate changes, but is also structured to build longterm constituency in climate tech – it will certainly make it way easier to pass even more aggressive climate policy in the future, at least provided Trump doesn’t get back in and just gut it next year. Like many good pieces of policy, the longer it continues to exist the harder it will be to repeal.
It’s a rare time to hope. Biden’s legacy, if it doesn’t get completely destroyed by his heinous approach to Gaza, should be as the climate president.
Progressives and lefty types don’t want to hear it though. They are at full “bitch eating crackers” hate of Biden and are uninterested to challenge those prejudices.
Based on all of the reading you’ve done about it?
