A broken system keeps stalling U.S. climate action

The U.S. keeps recognizing the climate crisis but can’t seem to commit to a plan that survives the next election.

Zack Colman, Benjamin Storrow, and Annie Snider report for Politico.

In short:

• The Trump administration has dismantled Biden-era power plant rules and aims to scrap incentives from the Inflation Reduction Act, gutting what little progress the U.S. had made on climate policy.
• Legal and political whiplash — from Supreme Court decisions to partisan culture wars — has left the federal government paralyzed on greenhouse gas regulation, forcing states like California and New York to attempt solo action.
• While market forces have helped push coal use down and clean energy up, scientists warn this won’t be enough to hit climate goals without binding national regulations.

Key quote:

“Given what the science says about the need to act urgently, this will be a lost four years in the United States.”

— Joanne Spalding, legal director, Sierra Club

Why this matters:

Politics, not science, is stalling critical U.S. action on climate, and it’s a race against time. Even modest emissions rules are now labeled extremist, fossil fuel lobbyists haunt the halls of Congress. Climate change isn’t waiting for bipartisan consensus. It’s already showing up in the form of smoke-choked summers, vanishing coastlines, and illnesses driven by heat and pollution.

Read more: