Cardin Statement on Trump’s Withdrawal of U.S. from Paris Climate Agreement

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, released the following statement Thursday after President Trump announced he would withdraw the United States from the Paris Climate Agreement:

“President Trump’s decision today to remove the United States from the Paris Agreement is a shocking reversal of American global leadership and transparently political, the clearest sign yet he will do whatever he can to dismantle President Obama’s legacy purely for the sake of it. Such a decision is not based in science, economics, diplomacy, policy, or in basic fact about the state of the planet’s health. Rather it is done with no regard for the millions of Americans who work in the clean energy industry, with disdain for America’s historical allies, and out of fear of a changing global economy.

“The world must be exasperated and disappointed in our country today, and China, Russia, India and other countries will move in short order to assume our spot at the head of the climate diplomacy table, harming current and future clean energy job prospects in the United States. The President’s action today makes America last. For someone supposedly so good at making deals, what the President will soon come to realize is that there will be far fewer deals to be had as a result of his actions today.

“I am exploring legislative solutions to mitigate the damage the president seeks and to do my part to ensure America remains a climate change fighter and leader.”

Background:

Senator Cardin led a Senate delegation to the Paris COP21 in December 2015. Cardin is the lead author of a Senate resolution (S. Res. 155) in support of the Paris Agreement and U.S. leadership on climate change, and recently wrote to Secretary of State Rex Tillerson along with his colleague U.S. Senator Susan Collins (R-Maine), urging him to advise the President to keep the United States in the Paris Agreement.

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