Nearly 60 House Democrats are urging President Biden to issue a national climate emergency, which would give him more authority to deal with climate change, according to their petition, The Hill reported.
Leading the signers in a letter to Biden, Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York and Earl Blumenauer of Oregon said that given the “scope and urgency of the problem,” the president should deploy the “full power” of the executive branch.
The letter comes after Biden avoided making a formal commitment in a speech he gave on Wednesday in Massachusetts, calling climate change an “emergency.”
After Sen. Joe Manchin declared his opposition to a significant climate spending package that had been delayed in Congress, Biden promised to take action on climate change in the address. If no Republicans support the measure, it would need the backing of all Democrats in order to move forward because the Senate is split 50-50.
The National Climate Emergency Act, which mandates a national climate emergency declaration and defines a federal response to climate change, should also have Biden’s backing, according to the House legislators’ statement.
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