Political Climate

“Decarbonization” was the catchword of last week’s Global Climate Action Summit in San Francisco.

Stakeholders from all over the world made new commitments to combatting climate change. But the spotlight was really on California, where Governor Jerry Brown signed an historic bill into law — requiring the state to power its electric grid with 100 percent carbon-free resources by 2045.

That’s not all. Brown kicked off the week with a bang by also signing an executive order committing the California to complete carbon neutrality by 2045.

So the Political Climate team sat down with a man who knows a thing or two about decarbonization in the Golden State: Michael Picker, president of the California Public Utilities Commission.

The CPUC is responsible for regulating the state’s electricity sector, and will oversee many aspects of California’s transition to a low-carbon economy. Managing that transition will be the state’s greatest challenge, according to Picker.

Recommended reading:

Subscribe to the Political Climate podcast via Apple Podcasts, GooglePlay, TuneIn, Overcast, Stitcher and Spotify.

Follow Political Climate on Twitter @Poli_Climate.

California lawmakers just passed an historic 100 percent clean electricity mandate. 

A few years ago, advocating for 100 percent clean energy was considered radical. Even some political allies of the cause argued that the concept was so far-fetched it was damaging to the climate movement.

Democratic podcast co-host Brandon Hurlbut recalls the early days of championing 100 percent renewables as a member of the Solutions Project — and the lessons learned.

Next, we hear from Georgia Public Service Commissioner Tim Echols, to learn how his red Southern state became a top 10 U.S. solar market without any incentives.

And we explore how other states can follow in California’s clean energy wake.

Recommended reading:

Subscribe to the Political Climate podcast via Apple Podcasts, GooglePlay, TuneIn, Overcast, Stitcher and Spotify.

Follow Political Climate on Twitter @Poli_Climate.

Senator Martin Heinrich believes a 100 percent clean energy electric grid is within reach during his lifetime. There will be technical challenges to overcome, but it’s “completely doable,” he said, in an exclusive interview with Political Climate.

This week marks the launch of Senator Heinrich’s “Clean Energy Vision,” a part of his re-election campaign for this fall. The ad and supporting document outline a multi-pronged approach for strengthening New Mexico's clean energy economy — including investments in energy storage, wind and solar, transmission lines and workforce development.

The plan doesn’t explicitly call for a 100 percent clean energy grid, but “clearly stating that the grid should be 100 percent clean energy is so important, because people need an idea to rally around,” said Heinrich.

In this special episode, the senator describes his Clean Energy Vision, and how he intends to make that vision a reality in these highly partisan times.

Recommended reading:

Subscribe to the Political Climate podcast via Apple Podcasts, Google Play, TuneIn, Overcast, Stitcher and Spotify.

Follow Political Climate on Twitter @Poli_Climate.

Are people who care about climate change downplaying the issue under social and political pressure? Has their alarmism been too muted? Or has the outcry become so loud that it's drowning out the possibility of collective action? The jury is out.

In this episode of Political Climate, we tackle a difficult question posed by a listener on the severity of the climate threat and the appropriate policy response. Amy Harder, energy and climate reporter for Axios, joins us to discuss.

But first we revisit the Democratic National Committee. The DNC has decided to once again accept donations from fossil fuel interests. The move comes just two months after the committee adopted a separate resolution banning donations from political action committees tied to coal, oil and gas companies. The reversal has spurred a debate among Democrats on matching up policies and values.

We also discuss the Kigali Amendment — a global climate agreement that key U.S. industry players, and many Republicans, are urging President Trump to ratify.

Recommended reading:

Subscribe to the Political Climate podcast via Apple Podcasts, Google Play, TuneIn, Overcast, Stitcher and Spotify.

Follow Political Climate on Twitter @Poli_Climate.

Political tribalism has created gridlock on climate policy — even more so than the polarization on climate science — according to a new peer-reviewed study.

If that’s the case, is there any hope of action any time soon? 

Tensions are running high. It’s officially less than 100 days until the 2018 midterm election. Democrats are angry and hell-bent on taking back Congress. Republicans are fighting to keep it. 

Will climate change even be on the election agenda? We discuss in this episode, recorded live at the Sun Valley Forum in Ketchum, Idaho. 

For this show, the Political Climate co-hosts were joined David Crane, the former CEO of NRG Energy, who argued that too many corporations are still “sitting on the sidelines” when it comes to ditching fossil fuels. 

We also addressed the Trump administration’s proposed freeze on fuel economy standards for cars and trucks, and threat to revoke California’s clean-air waiver. 

Recommended reading:

Subscribe to the Political Climate podcast via Apple Podcasts, Google Play, TuneIn, Overcast, Stitcher and Spotify.

Follow Political Climate on Twitter @Poli_Climate.

What does the rise of millennials mean for climate action? Will this plugged-in generation make climate change a priority? Can they find common ground between liberals and conservatives to solve this issue collectively?

Millennials are on the brink of becoming the largest generation in America. That means they will have an enormous impact on U.S. politics in the years ahead. In fact, they’re having an impact on politics already.

In this episode of Political Climate we talk to millennials who are channeling their concerns about climate change into action — inclusive and bipartisan action.

We speak to Benji Backer, president and founder of the American Conservation Coalition, a nonprofit focused on rallying young conservatives around environmental policy reform; and to Lydia Avila, executive director of the Power Shift Network, an organization working to mobilize the collective power of young people to mitigate climate change and create a just, clean energy future.

But first, we address the latest climate news from Capitol Hill: Congressman Carlos Curbelo’s new carbon tax bill, and a House resolution denouncing the idea of a carbon tax altogether.

Just how hopeful for climate action can Americans be?

Recommended reading:

Subscribe to the Political Climate podcast via Apple Podcasts, Google Play, TuneIn, Overcast, Stitcher and Spotify.

Follow Political Climate on Twitter @Poli_Climate.

Scott Pruitt is officially out at the Environmental Protection Agency. Former coal lobbyist Andrew Wheeler has stepped in as acting administrator. What does this mean for U.S. climate policy?

We asked a top EPA official.

In this episode, Mandy Gunasekara, principal deputy assistant administrator at the EPA Office of Air and Radiation, joins us in-studio to discuss the agency's priorities in the wake of the leadership shake-up. 

Gunasekara weighs in on replacing the Clean Power Plan and vehicle fuel economy standards -- two of President Obama's signature policies to combat climate change. We ask how the current EPA squares its deregulatory agenda with the mandate to protect public health and the environment.

We also tackle ongoing controversies, unrelated to Pruitt's personal scandals. Democratic co-host Brandon Hurlbut challenges Gunasekara on the EPA's treatment of climate science, while Republican co-host Shane Skelton raises issues with the Renewable Fuel Standard.

As always, we end on a bipartisan note in our "Say Something Nice" segment.

Recommended Reading:

Subscribe to the Political Climate podcast via Apple Podcasts, Google Play, TuneIn, Overcast and Stitcher. 

Follow Political Climate on Twitter @Poli_Climate.

The Democratic National Committee recently decided to no longer accept campaign donations from fossil fuel companies. The move signals the party’s commitment to addressing climate change. But could blocking contributions from oil, gas and coal companies end up hurting Democrats in the midterm election?

We discuss the new DNC policy with RL Miller, political director at Climate Hawks Vote, chair of the California Democratic Party’s environmental caucus, and a co-author of the resolution.

Before that, we answer a listener’s question about the influence of billionaire conservative activists Charles and David Koch. Did Republicans start to resist climate action because of the Koch brothers' involvement? 

We also check in on the non-partisan, non-profit Citizens' Climate Lobby, which met with members of Congress last week to advocate for a price on carbon. One participant admits progress is slow, but insists the dialogue is valuable. 

To kick off the show, we briefly circle back on the Climate Solutions Caucus, bipartisan group of lawmakers seeking to advance climate change policies. Several Republican members recently voted against valuing carbon in environmental regulations. Is the Caucus a sham?

Recommended reading:

Subscribe to the Political Climate podcast via Apple Podcasts, Google Play, TuneIn, Overcast and Stitcher. Look out for us soon on Spotify!

Follow Political Climate on Twitter @Poli_Climate.

Gas prices are always a hot-button political issue, and especially in an election year.

In the latest showdown, Democratic Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer blames a spike in gas prices on President Trump’s “reckless decision” to pull out of the Iran nuclear deal.

Republicans say these claims are insincere. If Democrats are so worried about high gas prices, why do they oppose oil drilling in the U.S. and support increasing gas taxes?

We’ve seen this play out before. When President Obama was in office, Republicans placed the blame for high gas prices squarely on the Democrats — and used cherrypicked statements from then Energy Secretary Steven Chu to help make their case.

In this week’s episode we tackle the hypocritical politics of gas prices. We also discuss the Pope’s upcoming climate summit with leading oil companies.

To kick it all off, we weigh in on a leaked memo with new details on the Trump administration’s unprecedented efforts to bail out struggling coal and nuclear plants. Is this an abuse of power?

Recommended reading:

Subscribe to the Political Climate podcast via Apple Podcasts, Google Play, TuneIn and Stitcher. Look out for us soon on Spotify!

Follow Political Climate on Twitter @Poli_Climate.

Correction: Rebecca Schenker, who submitted news topics for the "Constituent Services" segment of this show, is a transportation planner with the LADOT. This episode incorrectly referred to her as the head of transportation planning at the LADOT. We regret the error.

There are a lot of questions swirling around the 2018 midterm election — including how energy and climate issues will play into this broader political moment.

Can pro-climate Republicans hold on to their seats in Congress? Will Democratic candidates with cleantech industry experience win over voters? Could the outcome of Nevada’s Senate race affect how the nation deals with nuclear waste?

Then there’s California and Texas, the nation’s leading clean energy states, where the results of this year’s election could determine which political party controls Congress in 2019.

In this election preview show we discuss several key races where energy and climate issues are expected to be major factors. To up the ante, Political Climate co-hosts Shane Skelton and Brandon Hurlbut make a friendly election wager. 

As always, we end with our segment "If you can't say something nice," where our Republican and Democratic representatives have to say something they recently found redeeming about the opposing party.

Recommended reading:

Political Climate is now available on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Google Play or TuneIn. Follow Political Climate on Twitter @Poli_Climate.