Bernie's Badass Reply To Trump's Pipeline Executive Order Will Give You Hope
On Tuesday, President Donald Trump signed executive orders approving the construction of the controversial Keystone XL and Dakota Access pipelines.
He also signed an executive order that speeds up environmental reviews of other infrastructure projects, the Washington Post reports, stating,
The regulatory process in this country has become a tangled up mess.
The Trump administration has defended these pipelines by arguing they will increase economic growth and bring more jobs.
Meanwhile, Trump has also put a freeze on federal hiring.
If he's looking to stimulate economic growth and bring more jobs to America, this is a strange approach.
In the past, federal hiring freezes have disrupted agency operations and increased government costs. This freeze could force government agencies to hire expensive contractors.
So, in his first week as president, Trump has arguably made decisions that will damage both the economy and environment.
Between denying climate change is happening, filling his cabinet with people who hold similar views, ordering the EPA to freeze all grants and contracts and these executive orders, it's quite evident Trump intends on being an ally of the fossil fuel industry during his tenure, regardless of the long-term impact on the environment.
Scott Pruitt, Trump's nominee to head the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), is a close ally of the fossil fuel industry and a climate change denier. He's also sued the EPA, the organization he's been tapped to lead, several times.
This is precisely why Senator Bernie Sanders is livid about Trump's approach to the environment.
As soon as the news broke about these executive orders, Sanders vowed to fight Trump on them via Twitter.
Sanders has been ripping into Trump on the issue of climate change for quite some time now, and has promised to oppose the nominations of Pruitt for head of the EPA and Rick Perry for secretary of energy.
When it comes to executive orders, there is actually very little legislators can do to oppose them.
But it's clear that Sanders plans to make things very difficult for Trump when it comes to environmental issues.
If you're worried about the impact Trump might have on the environment, that's completely understandable.
But we are not hopeless in this fight, and Bernie Sanders, among many others, is proof of that.
If you want more information on what you can do to help address climate change under Trump, click here.
Citations: Trump Orders Broad Hiring Freeze for Federal Government (New York Times), Trump Gives Greenlight To Dakota Access Pipeline (Washington Post)
