Happy Earth Day to those who celebrate…
I’m wondering if Donald Trump should get the top award this year for environmentalism. Nothing accelerates climate change faster than moving a person from a low-carbon-output society (e.g., Haiti, 0.3 tons per person annually) to a high-carbon-output society (e.g., the U.S., 14 tons per person annually). Thus, by opening the U.S. border, Joe Biden and Kamala Harris did more to accelerate climate change than anyone in the modern era. Donald Trump, by contrast, has done more to prevent climate change than anyone (WSJ):
Similarly, although I am not personally a fan of Trump’s recent tariff efforts (even the immensely capable of Germans had trouble fighting on all fronts simultaneously; I think that perhaps Trump would have been more successful fighting one country at a time), it is unarguable that higher tariffs serve as a consumption tax and thus preserve the Earth’s resources, reduce CO2 output, etc. If doomsayers are correct and the U.S. is headed for recession/depression as a consequence of the tariffs, that’s even better for the environment.
So… here’s to Donald Trump, the World’s Greatest Environmentalist!
In other news, Bernie Sanders and AOC were apparently observing Earth Day from FL410 in a Canadian-made Challenger 604 private jet:
So the little people paid ~$150K for Bernie and AOC to travel in style?
“Trump would have been more successful fighting one country at a time”
He has been doing exactly that, fighting the US, quite successfully.
He should get the Earth Day award, the fire day award, the air day award, and the water day award!
If Trump started to deport the biggest consumers in the United States, regardless of their legal status here, he would definitely be worthy of that Earth Day award. Sadly, all he understands is consumption. Maybe he and Elon Musk should go first. Don’t let Earth’s atmosphere hit you on the way out. Or do.
Jennifer: You raise a good point. A deportation from a high-carbon economy into a low-carbon economy reduces CO2 output just as much as blocking someone from entering a high-carbon economy. Barack Obama deported more people than any other president, generally to low-carbon economies, so I guess he would be eligible for this award. https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2014/10/02/u-s-deportations-of-immigrants-reach-record-high-in-2013/
Should Donald Trump get an award for Earth Day? Yes!